North Korea’s decision to deploy troops to the Kursk region of Russia was seen as an escalation of the conflict with Ukraine. It was said that the North Korean leader was hoping his forces would return home battle-tested and ready to fight for the homeland. US officials say Russia has deployed some 8,000 North Koreans in the region, the border area where Ukrainian forces seized Russian territory in a surprise attack over the summer. But as The World’s Daniel Ofman tells us, there may be far fewer troops returning home to Pyongyang than expected.