Editor’s note: This article is the first in a two-part series on what North Korea has learned from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine enters its second year, and observers continue to draw military and geopolitical lessons from the conflict. The consensus is that the Russian military has vastly underperformed, while experts have also been busy analyzing advances in weapons systems like drones and the potential implications of the war for conflict in the Taiwan Strait.

North Korea is also paying close attention to the war, and as