After U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin stated that North Korea has deployed troops, on October 24, AFP published an article stating that North Korea's decision to deploy troops has at least three major motivations. What are the three main purposes of North Korea? According to the French media, first, because the relationship between North and South Korea is very tense right now, the North Korean army lacks combat experience. Going abroad to fight will allow the North Korean military to receive training and acquire specialized combat skills.
Second, North Korea also urgently needs war to test the capability of its military equipment. Therefore, deploying troops in a real war scenario will enable the testing of the quality of North Korean weapons and equipment. The third reason is that North Korea needs to obtain what it wants from Russia. Russia is very likely to reciprocate North Korea with missile technology, nuclear weapon technology, satellite technology, and more. Of course, this may also include food aid.
How do we view the analysis from the French media? It must be said that the analysis from the French media is quite reasonable. From North Korea's perspective, given the tense North-South Korean relationship, it does have a strong motivation to acquire combat capability, test the performance of its equipment, and enhance key weapon technologies to ensure it can respond to the worst-case scenario. Moreover, North Korea's deployment of troops is, to some extent, a way to exert pressure on the U.S. and South Korea.
Since the relationship between the two sides has deteriorated to this extent, North Korea, which is barefoot, is not afraid of wearing shoes. Standing firmly with Russia also helps ensure North Korea's security. As for the kind of sanctions the U.S. can impose, North Korea is essentially not concerned at all. The U.S. has already imposed sanctions to this extent; what else can it do? For the global landscape, North Korea's deployment of troops is undoubtedly a significant signal of a major escalation in conflict, and as the most important relevant party, South Korea should undoubtedly evaluate its relationship with North Korea carefully.