Deployment in Ukraine

Videos allegedly show Kim’s soldiers in Russia

Kim Jong Un not only supports Putin with weapons ...

(Bild: AP/Korea News Service)

According to South Korean information, North Korea is supporting Russia's army in Ukraine and is already actively involved in the fighting. Specialists are operating North Korean missiles on the front line. Videos are also said to show units training in Russia.

Around 1,500 North Korean special forces have embarked on Russian ships to Russia. North Korea wants to send a total of 12,000 soldiers to Russia, according to the South Korean news agency Yonhap.

The presidential office in Seoul announced that it had been following the transfer of the North Korean soldiers. According to the statement, the transports began on October 8. North Korea and Russia did not initially comment on the information.

South Korea sees serious security threat
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol held an unscheduled security meeting with top intelligence and military officials to assess the involvement of North Korean troops in the war in Ukraine. "The participants shared the view that the current situation (...) poses a serious security threat not only to our country but also to the international community," it said.

The South Korean secret service reported that AI-controlled facial recognition programs had been used to identify the North Korean soldiers sent to Russia. They were given Russian uniforms and weapons and issued with fake Russian passports. They were taken to barracks in eastern Russia and trained there.

Recordings are said to show North Koreans training in Russia:

It is likely that they will be transferred to the front after preparations, the spy agency added. North Korea has also delivered artillery shells, anti-tank weapons and missiles to Russia.

NATO sees no evidence of presence
The US military think tank ISW (Institute for the Study of War) also recently reported that several thousand North Korean soldiers had arrived in Russia and were being prepared for deployment in Ukraine. NATO chief Mark Rutte, however, stated that there is no evidence to date of the presence of North Korean soldiers in Russia.

Pyongyang is already massively supporting the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine with weapons and ammunition. According to the South Korean secret service, the internationally largely isolated country is primarily supplying artillery shells and short-range missiles.

Both Russia and North Korea have been denying possible arms deliveries for months. The government in Moscow has also rejected earlier speculation that North Korean soldiers could be deployed in Ukraine.

Cooperation significantly strengthened
Russia and North Korea have significantly intensified their cooperation since the summit meeting between heads of state Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un last year. According to the latest information from South Korea, North Korea has 1.28 million active soldiers and has pushed ahead with the development of a range of ballistic missiles and a nuclear arsenal.

As recently as June, Moscow and Pyongyang signed a treaty on all-encompassing strategic cooperation, which also includes mutual assistance in the event of an attack by a third country.

The Kremlin is also working on further intensifying its nuclear intimidation of the West. The Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported on Friday, citing the Russian Ministry of Defense, that the commanders of the Russian strategic nuclear forces are testing the readiness of their unit stationed in the city of Bologoye. The exercise included maneuvers and the deployment of mobile intercontinental ballistic missiles of the Yars type, the report continued.