List of wars involving North Korea

Last updated

This is a list of wars involving North Korea since 1948, when the Korean peninsula was de facto divided into North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea, DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea, ROK).

Contents

List of wars involving North Korea: 1948–present

ConflictNorth Korea and its alliesOpponentsResultsNorth Korean
losses
North Korea leader
MilitaryCivilian
North Korea
Korean War
(1950–1953)
Flag of North Korea (1948-1992).svg North Korea Flag of South Korea (1949-1984).svg  South Korea
Flag of the United Nations.svg United Nations [a]
Inconclusive
215,000–
350,000
1,550,000
Vietnam War
(1955–1975)
Victory
14 [3]
None
Korean DMZ Conflict
(1966–1969)
Flag of North Korea (1948-1992).svg North Korea Flag of South Korea (1949-1984).svg  South Korea
Flag of the United States (Web Colors).svg United States
Defeat
397
Unknown
1971 JVP insurrection
(1971)
Communist Hammer and Sickle flag.svg JVP
Supported by:
Flag of North Korea.svg North Korea
Flag of Ceylon.svg Ceylon

Military intervention:

Defeat
  • The JVP controlled Ceylon's Southern Province and Sabaragamuwa Province for several weeks
  • Rebel leaders were captured and the remaining members surrendered
  • Ceylonese government re-established control of the entire island
  • Expulsion of North Korean diplomats
Unknown killed
Several arrested
Unknown
Yom Kippur War
(1973)
Flag of Israel.svg Israel Defeat [12]
None [13] [14] [15]
None [13] [14] [15]
Angolan Civil War
(1975–2002)
Flag of Angola.svg People's Republic of Angola/Republic of Angola

Flag of Cuba.svg Cuba (1975–1989)
Flag of South West Africa People's Organisation.svg SWAPO (1975–1989) [16]
Flag of the African National Congress.svg ANC (1975–1989) [17] [16]
Executive Outcomes (1993–1995) [18]
FLNC Congo.svg FLNC (1975–2001) [19] [20]
Flag of Namibia.svg Namibia (2001–2002) [b]

Military advisers and pilots:
Flag of the Democratic People's Republic of Angola.svg Democratic People's Republic of Angola

Bandeira da FNLA.svg FNLA (1976–1978) [20]
Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa (1975–1989) [27]
Flag of Zaire (1971-1997).svg Zaire (1975) [30] [20]


Flag of Cabinda.svg FLEC

Victory
  • Withdrawal of all foreign forces in 1989.
  • Transition towards a multiparty political system in 1991/92.
  • Dissolution of the armed forces of the FNLA.
  • Participation of UNITA and FNLA, as political parties, in the new political system, from 1991/92 onwards.
  • Jonas Savimbi, leader of UNITA, killed in 2002; UNITA abandoned armed struggle and participated in electoral politics.
  • Resistance of FLEC continued to this day
Unknown
Unknown
Ugandan Bush War
(1980–1986)
Flag of Uganda.svg Ugandan government

Flag of Tanzania.svg Tanzania (until 1985)
Flag of North Korea.svg North Korea (1981–1985)
Flag of Zaire (1971-1997).svg Zaire (1986, alleged) [31]

Flag of Uganda.svg National Resistance Movement (NRM)

Flag of Uganda.svg West Nile rebels:

Flag of Uganda.svg UFM (1980–83)
Flag of Uganda.svg FEDEMU (1983–85) [34]
Flag of Uganda.svg ULM [35]
Flag of Uganda.svg UNLF-AD [36]


Rwenzururu flag (1962-82).png Rwenzururu movement (until 1982)
Karamojong groups

Defeat
700
Unknown
Battle of Amami-Ōshima
(2001)
Flag of North Korea.svg North Korea Flag of Japan.svg Japan Defeat
  • North Korean naval trawler sunk [37]
15 [38]
1 naval trawler sunk [39]
None
Yemeni Civil War
(2015–present)
Flag of Yemen.svg Supreme Political Council Flag of Yemen.svg Hadi government

Saudi-led coalition
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia [53]
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates [54]
Flag of Senegal.svg Senegal [55]
Flag of Sudan.svg Sudan [56] [57]
Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco [58]
Flag of Qatar.svg Qatar [56] (2015–17) [59]
Academi security contractors [60] [61] [62] [63]

Under 1,000 troops:

Flag of the United States.svg Green Berets [64] [65]
Flag of France.svg French Army Special Forces Command [66] [67] [68]
ShababFlag.svg Al-Qaeda [69] [70] [71]
Academi


Flag of South Yemen.svg Southern Transitional Council (from 2017) [76]
Flag of Yemen.svg Tareq Saleh forces (from 2017) [77] [78]


ShababFlag.svg Ansar al-Sharia


Islamic State flag.svg ISIL-YP [83] [84]

Ongoing
Unknown
Unknown

Supported by:
Flag of Belarus.svg  Belarus [f]

Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine
Ongoing600 [91] [92]
None

See also

Notes

  1. On 9 July 1951 troop constituents were: US: 70.4%; ROK: 23.3%; other UNC: 6.3%. [1]
  2. Irritated by UNITA cross-border raids, the Namibian Defence Force retaliated by sending units into southern Angola and destroying a UNITA training camp at Licua in late January 2001. [21] The Namibian troops were not withdrawn from Angola until May 2002. [21]
  3. The North Korean Military Mission in Angola had about 1,500 personnel attached to FAPLA in 1986, most likely advisers, although their exact duties are uncertain. [27] Their presence in Angola may have been indirectly subsidised by the Soviet Union. [28] Up to 3,000 North Korean military personnel served in Angola throughout the 1980s. [29]
  4. 1 2 The Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic were Russian puppet states, having declared their independence from Ukraine in May 2014. Several months into the invasion, Russia declared that it had formally annexed both entities in September 2022. They continue to exist as republics of Russia.
  5. North Korean troops have widely been reported as fighting in this war since October 2024. [85] [86] See: North Korean involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
  6. In 2022, Belarus allowed Russia to use its territory to launch the invasion [87] [88] [89] and to launch missiles into Ukraine. [90] See: Belarusian involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine

References

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  2. Birtle, Andrew J. (2000). The Korean War: Years of Stalemate. U.S. Army Center of Military History. p. 34. Archived from the original on 24 July 2019. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  3. "North Korea fought in Vietnam War". BBC News. 31 March 2000. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  4. O'Ballance (1979).
  5. Shazly (2003), p. 278.
  6. Rabinovich (2004), pp. 464–465.
  7. Hussain, Hamid (November 2002). "Opinion: The Fourth round – A Critical Review of 1973 Arab–Israeli War". Defence Journal. Archived from the original on 16 January 2009.
  8. Mahjoub Tobji (2006). Les officiers de Sa Majesté: Les dérives des généraux marocains 1956–2006 (in French). Fayard. p. 107. ISBN   978-2-213-63015-1.
  9. Ra'anan, G. D. (1981). The Evolution of the Soviet Use of Surrogates in Military Relations with the Third World, with Particular Emphasis on Cuban Participation in Africa. Santa Monica: Rand Corporation. p. 37
  10. Shazly (2003), pp. 83–84.
  11. Cenciotti, David. "Israeli F-4s Actually Fought North Korean MiGs During the Yom Kippur War". Business Insider.
  12. References:
  13. 1 2 Nicolle, David & Cooper, Tom: Arab MiG-19 and MiG-21 units in combat.
  14. 1 2 Aloni, Shlomo: Arab–Israeli Air Wars, 1947–82.
  15. 1 2 Shazly, Lieutenant General Saad el (2003). The Crossing of the Suez, Revised Edition (Revised ed.). American Mideast Research. pp. 83–84. ISBN   0-9604562-2-8.
  16. 1 2 Shubin, Vladimir Gennadyevich (2008). The Hot "Cold War": The USSR in Southern Africa. London: Pluto Press. pp. 92–93, 249. ISBN   978-0-7453-2472-2.
  17. Thomas, Scott (1995). The Diplomacy of Liberation: The Foreign Relations of the ANC Since 1960. London: Tauris Academic Studies. pp. 202–207. ISBN   978-1850439936.
  18. Fitzsimmons, Scott (November 2012). "Executive Outcomes Defeats UNITA". Mercenaries in Asymmetric Conflicts. Cambridge University Press. p. 167. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139208727.006. ISBN   9781107026919.
  19. Wolfe, Thomas; Hosmer, Stephen (1983). Soviet policy and practice toward Third World conflicts. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 87. ISBN   978-0669060546.
  20. 1 2 3 Hughes, Geraint (2014). My Enemy's Enemy: Proxy Warfare in International Politics. Brighton: Sussex Academic Press. pp. 65–79. ISBN   978-1845196271.
  21. 1 2 Weigert, Stephen (2011). Angola: A Modern Military History . Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 85-151, 233. ISBN   978-0230117778.
  22. Vanneman, Peter (1990). Soviet Strategy in Southern Africa: Gorbachev's Pragmatic Approach . Stanford: Hoover Institution Press. pp.  41–57. ISBN   978-0817989026.
  23. Chan, Stephen (2012). Southern Africa: Old Treacheries and New Deceits. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. pp. 42–46. ISBN   978-0300184280.
  24. Mitchell, Thomas G. (2013). Israel/Palestine and the Politics of a Two-State Solution. Jefferson: McFarland & Company Inc. pp. 94–99. ISBN   978-0-7864-7597-1.
  25. Baynham, Simon (1986). Military Power and Politics in Black Africa. Abingdon: Routledge. pp. 216–219. ISBN   978-0367677275. The Soviets provided direction, heavy lift and training staffs, the East Germans technical specialists ranging from helicopter pilots to medical personnel, and the Cubans a mass of soldiery...The next pattern was one of mixed Angolan and Cuban ground units, supported by East German-manned helicopters...[conditions dictated] the withdrawal of Cuban units to garrison roles, the actual ground fighting being left to Angolan units (now equipped with some very recent Soviet weaponry), very closely supported by East German and Russian training logistic cadres.
  26. Brent, Winston (1994). African Military Aviation. Nelspruit: Freeworld. p. 12. ISBN   978-0958388016. Besides arms and aircraft, large numbers of Russians, East Germans, and Cubans were brought into the country to bolster the Angolan armed forces...Although a number of locals were beginning to undertake combat sorties, most of the sorties were flown either by Cuban or East German pilots and crew.
  27. 1 2 James III, W. Martin (2011) [1992]. A Political History of the Civil War in Angola: 1974–1990. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers. pp. 207–214, 239–245. ISBN   978-1-4128-1506-2.
  28. Polack, Peter (13 December 2013). The Last Hot Battle of the Cold War: South Africa vs. Cuba in the Angolan Civil War. Casemate Publishers. pp. 66–68. ISBN   9781612001951.
  29. Herskovitz, Jon (22 October 2024). "Why North Korean Troops in Russia Have the World's Attention". BNN Bloomberg . Ontario. Archived from the original on 1 January 2025. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
  30. Steenkamp, Willem (2006) [1985]. Borderstrike! (Third ed.). Durban: Just Done Productions Publishing. pp. 102–106. ISBN   978-1-920169-00-8.
  31. "Ugandan rebels accuse Zaire of invasion". United Press International. 20 January 1986. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  32. 1 2 3 Cooper & Fontanellaz 2015, p. 39.
  33. Seftel 2010, p. 268.
  34. CIA 2012, p. 6.
  35. Seftel 2010, p. 262.
  36. Golooba-Mutebi 2008, p. 14.
  37. "Japan Says a Mystery Boat Fired Rockets at Its Ships". The New York Times . 25 December 2001. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  38. "Japan defiant over boat sinking". The Guardian. 24 December 2001. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  39. "North Korean Provocative Actions, 1950–2007" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. 20 April 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
  40. Eleonora Ardemagni (19 March 2018). "Yemen's Military: From the Tribal Army to the Warlords". IPSI . Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  41. "Death of a leader: Where next for Yemen's GPC after murder of Saleh?". Middle East Eye . 23 January 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  42. See:
  43. See:
  44. "North Korea's Balancing Act in the Persian Gulf". The Huffington Post. 17 August 2015. Archived from the original on 17 August 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2015. North Korea's military support for Houthi rebels in Yemen is the latest manifestation of its support for anti-American forces.
  45. "My enemy's enemy is my ally: How al-Qaeda fighters are backed by Yemen's government". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 13 November 2017. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
  46. رئيس مجلس الحراك الثوري الجنوبي فادي باعوم يفتح النار على الإمارات وادواتها في الجنوب | المشهد اليمني الأول [Head of the Southern Revolutionary Movement Council Fadi Baoum opens fire on the UAE and its tools in the south]. The First Yemeni Scene - Al Mashhad Al Yemeni (in Arabic). 28 April 2018. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018.
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  48. "Hadi counts on Saleh kin to revive elite forces". Gulf News . 23 March 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  49. 1 2 3 "Military reshuffle in Yemen aimed at tackling Saleh family". The Arab Weekly. 25 February 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  50. "Exiled son of Yemen's Saleh takes up anti-Houthi cause". Reuters. 4 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  51. "Believed dead, ex-president's nephew shows up in Yemen" . Retrieved 7 November 2018.
  52. "Republican Guard Chooses to Liberate Yemen from Houthis". Asharq Al-Awsat. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  53. Mazzetti, Mark; Kirkpatrick, David D. (25 March 2015). "Saudi Arabia Begins Air Assault in Yemen". The New York Times . The New York Times. Archived from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
    Felicia Schwartz, Hakim Almasmari and Asa Fitch (26 March 2015). "Saudi Arabia Launches Military Operations in Yemen". The Wall Street Journal .
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  55. "Senegal to send 2,100 troops to join Saudi-led alliance". Reuters. 4 May 2015. Archived from the original on 5 May 2015. Retrieved 4 May 2015.
  56. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Egypt, Jordan, Sudan and Pakistan ready for ground offensive in Yemen: report". the globe and mail. 26 March 2015. Archived from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  57. "Yemen conflict: Saudi-led strike 'hits wrong troops'". BBC News . 17 October 2015. Archived from the original on 18 October 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015. Hundreds of Sudanese troops reportedly arrived in the southern port city of Aden on Saturday, the first batch of an expected 10,000 reinforcements for the Saudi-led coalition.
  58. "Morocco sends ground troops to fight in Yemen". Gulf News .
  59. "UAE, Egypt and Saudi Arabia cut ties with Qatar". SBS. 5 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
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  64. "US special forces 'helping' Saudis battle Houthi rebels". Al-Jazeera. 4 May 2018.
  65. "US special forces secretly deployed to assist Saudi Arabia in Yemen conflict". The Independent. 3 May 2018.
  66. "French troops fighting Houthis in Yemen alongside UAE forces, Le Figaro claims". Daily Sabah . 16 June 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  67. "French Elite Forces, Saudi-led Coalition Cooperate to Fight Houthi in Yemen". Albawaba. 17 June 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  68. "French special forces on the ground in Yemen: Le Figaro". Reuters. 16 June 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  69. "Report: Saudi-UAE coalition 'cut deals' with al-Qaeda in Yemen". Al-Jazeera. 6 August 2018.
  70. "US allies, Al Qaeda battle rebels in Yemen". Fox News. 7 August 2018.
  71. "Allies cut deals with al Qaeda in Yemen to serve larger fight with Iran". San Francisco Chronicle. 6 August 2018.
  72. Spencer, Richard (15 January 2015). "UK military 'working alongside' Saudi bomb targeters in Yemen war". The Telegraph . Archived from the original on 15 January 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  73. 1 2 3 "Senegal to support Yemen campaign". BBC News. 5 May 2015. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015. The coalition includes eight Arab states. The US, the UK and France are providing logistical support.
  74. "U.S. military strikes Yemen after missile attacks on U.S. Navy ship". Reuters. 4 May 2015. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
    "Canadian involvement in the Yemen war just got deeper | Public Radio International". Pri.org. 14 October 2016. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
    Kube, Courtney (27 October 2016). "Canadian Officials: Iran Supplying Weapons to Yemen's Houthi Rebels". NBC News. Archived from the original on 25 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  75. McFadden, Cynthia (7 February 2017). "Yemen Raid Had Secret Target: Al Qaeda Leader Qassim Al-Rimi". NBC News. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  76. "What is going on in southern Yemen?". Al Jazeera . 29 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
  77. "A killer or a hero? Nephew of former Yemeni president divides Taiz". Middle East Eye . 16 April 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  78. "Is Tareq Saleh making a comeback to battle Yemen's Houthis with UAE-funded militias?". The New Arab. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  79. Osama bin Javaid (28 January 2018). "Yemen: Separatists take over government headquarters in Aden". Al Jazeera . Retrieved 28 January 2018.
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  81. "Jetzt bekriegen sich auch einstige Verbündete". Tagesschau . 28 January 2018. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  82. "How Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen has made al Qaeda stronger – and richer". Reuters . 8 April 2016. Archived from the original on 8 April 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  83. "ISIS gaining ground in Yemen, competing with al Qaeda". CNN . 21 January 2015. Archived from the original on 22 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  84. "Yemeni implosion pushes southern Sunnis into arms of al-Qaida and Isis". The Guardian . 22 March 2015. Archived from the original on 1 February 2017.
    "Desknote: The Growing Threat of ISIS in Yemen". American Enterprise Institute. 6 May 2015. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  85. Graham-Harrison, Emma and McCurry, Justin (2024-10-10). "North Koreans deployed alongside Russian troops in Ukraine, sources say". The Guardian. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  86. Uk, Yang (10 February 2025). "North Korea's Military Behavior in 2024 and Choices for 2025". Asan Institute for Policy Studies: 2. Retrieved 3 March 2025. By mid-October, North Korea had evolved into a blood ally of Russia, sending 11,000 troops to the front lines of the Ukraine war
  87. Lister, Tim; Kesa, Julia (24 February 2022). "Ukraine says it was attacked through Russian, Belarus and Crimea borders". Kyiv: CNN. Archived from the original on 24 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  88. Murphy, Palu (24 February 2022). "Troops and military vehicles have entered Ukraine from Belarus". CNN. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
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  90. "Missiles launched into Ukraine from Belarus". BBC News . 27 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
  91. Kieran Guilbert (30 April 2025). "About 600 North Korean soldiers killed in Russia's war against Ukraine, Seoul says". EuroNews. Retrieved 2025-04-30.
  92. Seoul’s spy agency says North Korean soldiers captured in Ukraine haven’t shown desire to defect

Sources

The Korean War :