[Karah]

NORTH KOREAN SOLDIERS DEPLOYED TO RUSSIA ARE GETTING THEIR FIRST TASTE OF THE INTERNET—AND MANY ARE USING IT FOR SOMETHING YOU MIGHT NOT EXPECT. ACCORDING TO REPORTS, THE TROOPS ARE DIVING HEADFIRST INTO A WORLD OF UNRESTRICTED ONLINE CONTENT, WITH MANY INDULGING IN PORNOGRAPHY. IT’S A BIZARRE NEW CHAPTER FOR SOLDIERS LONG KEPT UNDER STRICT DIGITAL CONTROL BACK HOME.

ACCORDING TO FINANCIAL TIMES JOURNALIST GIDEON RACHMAN –

NORTH KOREAN TROOPS IN RUSSIA, HAVE NEVER HAD UNRESTRICTED INTERNET ACCESS BEFORE. 

AS A RESULT, MANY ARE “GORGING ON PORNOGRAPHY” –

TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE SITUATION TO VIEW EXPLICIT CONTENT –

SOMETHING THEY’VE BEEN DENIED ACCESS TO IN THEIR OWN COUNTRY.

THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE WAS ASKED ABOUT THIS –

AND RESPONDED BY SAYING THEY’RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE REPORTS –

AND ARE MORE FOCUSED ON THE SERIOUS ASPECTS OF THE WAR –

INCLUDING THE ESCALATION OF NORTH KOREAN TROOPS NOW ON THE GROUND.

UKRAINIAN AND U.S. INTELLIGENCE SUGGEST THAT OVER 10,000 NORTH KOREAN SOLDIERS COULD EVENTUALLY JOIN RUSSIA’S MILITARY CAMPAIGN IN UKRAINE. UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY CONFIRMED THAT SOME OF THESE TROOPS HAVE ALREADY BEEN DEPLOYED TO THE KURSK REGION, WHERE THEY’VE CLASHED WITH UKRAINIAN FORCES, RESULTING IN CASUALTIES.

ZELENSKY BELIEVES THERE TO ALREADY BE 11 THOUSAND NORTH KOREAN TROOPS IN THE AREA –

AS UKRAINE’S RECENT MILITARY INCURSIONS INTO RUSSIAN TERRITORY HAVE LARGELY STALLED.