"Conflict Between North and South Is a Matter of Time," Publicly Mentioned… What Is Ukraine's Hidden Intention Behind Raising the Landmine Incident?

The Ukrainian side has claimed that North Korea, which participated in the war in Ukraine to support Russia, is upgrading its weapons and strengthening its military power based on combat experience.

Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, claimed that such a buildup of North Korea's military power is heightening tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

According to Ukrainian media outlets such as RBC-Ukraine, Budanov stated in an interview with the online media outlet NewsPace released yesterday (September 27) that "North Korea is improving its own weapons based on the experience gained in the war in Ukraine."

He meant that while supplying weapons and materials and dispatching troops to Russia, North Korea is also strengthening its military power through wartime experience.

Budanov claimed that some of the newly introduced weapons by North Korea are Russian-made.

In particular, mentioning North Korea's drone capabilities, he said that a system capable of mass-producing suicide attack drones has already been established.

At the same time, he claimed that North Korea's military reinforcement is "to prepare for actual combat operations on the Korean Peninsula."

He also mentioned the recently presumed landmine explosion accident that occurred in the demilitarized zone on the South Korean side.

Budanov claimed that another incident has occurred near the inter-Korean military demarcation line, and as the situation continues to worsen, it is only a matter of time before an incident occurs that could trigger an uncontrollable conflict.

However, he did not present specific grounds showing that North Korea is actually preparing for an armed conflict with South Korea.

A separate analysis regarding North Korea's military strengthening has also emerged.

The Wall Street Journal reported on September 27 that North Korea is full-scale testing simultaneous attack tactics using drones and missiles deployed in the Ukraine and Middle East wars.

During a drill on September 12, North Korea simultaneously fired four types of weapons: cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, multiple rocket launchers, and unmanned aerial vehicles.

This is the so-called "swarming attack" method, which overwhelms the opponent's air defense network by simultaneously deploying multiple weapons with different speeds and characteristics.

North Korea also fired two missiles presumed to be hypersonic missiles on September 20.

Experts analyzed that if North Korea operates drones alongside its existing missile forces, it could impose a burden on South Korea's air defense network and increase the success rate of follow-up attacks.

(Reported by Kim Minjeong | Video by Jang Yu-jin | Graphics by Yook Do-hyun | Produced by SBS Digital News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.