Lee Sung-kwon said there were reports of preparations for additional deployment, and that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could oversee training. He quoted intelligence officials as saying the high number of casualties could be attributed to an "unfamiliar battlefield environment, where North Korean forces are being utilised as expendable frontline assault units, and their lack of capability to counter drone attacks". "Within the Russian military, complaints have reportedly surfaced that the North Korean troops, due to their lack of knowledge about drones, are more of a burden than an asset," he added. Neither Russia nor the North have acknowledged the troop deployments, but a North Korean statement on Thursday carried by state news agency KCNA said the country's alliance with Moscow was "deterring the US and the West's ill-intended extension of influence".