Secretive North Korea has one of the world’s largest militaries, with 1.28 million active soldiers, but unlike in Russia, the Korean People's Army (KPA) has no recent experience of combat. Pyongyang’s army is “thoroughly indoctrinated but with low readiness,” says Mark Cancian, from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

The North Korean army is one of the world’s largest.​ As it joins Russia’s war against Ukraine, its soldiers are paying a price for Kim Jong-un’s geopolitical maneuvers.