A resident of North Hamgyong Province who served as an officer in the North Korean military’s 11th Corps (Storm Corps) and was discharged (discharged) in 2016 told NK Times on the 4th, “The combat power of the Storm Corps soldiers is better than that of regular units, but their mental and physical preparedness is not the same as in the 1980s.”
He continued, “The average meal for our (North Korean) soldiers is cornmeal, salted cabbage soup, salted cabbage, and salted radish, and oily foods can only be enjoyed on holidays,” and explained, “This kind of food supply situation is not excluded even for special forces.”
He also claimed, “How good would it be if soldiers who only eat salt were in good nutritional condition, and how well would they fight if they went to war with that body?” and “Furthermore, these days, soldiers know very well that they only have one life, so if they go into actual combat, they will try to focus on preserving their own lives.”
He emphasized that “special forces soldiers who perform martial arts demonstrations (charyeokso) such as breaking bricks and cutting stone sledgehammers on TV are naturally physically strong young men who undergo long-term intensive training,” and that “only a very small number of these skilled combatants are left.”
The 11th Corps, also known as the Storm Corps, is based on the Special 8th Corps established in 1969. The Special 8th Corps is a special force created around the 124th Unit that carried out the Blue House raid on January 21, 1968. In 1983, North Korea reorganized this unit into the Light Correctional Service Bureau, integrating other special forces, and continuously expanded and reorganized it to the level of a corps. It is known externally as the 630th Combined Forces Unit.
This unit, which has its headquarters in Tokcheon, South Pyongan Province, was also mobilized for border blockades in 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. had done. In particular, it has been reported that during the process of setting up mines and barbed wire within a 0.5km radius of the Amnok River, some soldiers deserted the unit and attacked villages, and even broke into Chinese houses near the border to loot money and goods. It has been reported that the backlash from residents who claimed that the elite special forces soldiers were bringing shame to the country was considerable.
In relation to this, a source in Yanggang Province recently told our newspaper in a phone call, “The Storm Corps soldiers who were mobilized to block the border during the COVID-19 outbreak looked stronger than the regular infantry soldiers, but they were no different in that they were weak because they didn’t eat well.”
He continued, “Here, the Storm Corps is recognized as the unit with the best combat power,” and “However, upon hearing the news that the Storm Corps was dispatched to the Russian war, the residents expressed their discontent with the authorities’ actions, saying, ‘Why are we sending our troops to another country’s war? ’”
The source added, “Soldiers who usually didn’t eat properly were dragged into another country’s war with their weak bodies. “Many residents are expressing their discontent, saying that they will die a living death,” he added, explaining, “Parents who sent their sons to the military in particular are staying up all night worrying about their children.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian intelligence authorities recently revealed that North Korean special forces soldiers deployed to Russia are undergoing assault training and North Korean workers are fortifying occupied areas.
This article is a translation by Google, so it may differ from the Korean version.
