In a striking development, North Korea has pledged to send a substantial military force to support Russia in its ongoing conflict with Ukraine. According to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, citing insights from Seoul’s National Intelligence Service, North Korea plans to deploy 12,000 troops, including special forces, to the Ukrainian battlefield.
South Korea’s intelligence agency has confirmed that North Korea intends to mobilize four brigades, totaling 12,000 soldiers, to fight alongside Russian forces. This decision underscores the strengthening military ties between Pyongyang and Moscow.
Zelensky raises concerns over troop movements
This revelation follows Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s warning about Pyongyang’s intentions. Zelensky noted that Ukrainian intelligence had reported the deployment of North Korean personnel in Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine. “We know about 10,000 soldiers of North Korea that they are preparing to send to fight against us,” Zelensky stated at a press conference in Brussels post-EU summit, emphasizing, “That’s really, I think, a big problem.”
In response, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol convened a security meeting, urging the international community to respond decisively and using “all available means.”
Seoul’s spy agency has confirmed the arrival of 1,500 North Korean troops in Russia, with sources suggesting the number could rise to 12,000. The bolstered defense and diplomatic relations between Russia and North Korea have been evident in recent months.
This geopolitical alliance was highlighted last week when North Korean leader Kim Jong Un extended birthday greetings to Russian President Vladimir Putin, referring to him as his “closest comrade.”
Reports from Russia’s Far East, as conveyed by BBC Russian, indicate the presence of North Korean soldiers stationed at a military base near Ussuriysk, north of Vladivostok. However, military experts caution that language barriers and North Korea’s lack of recent combat experience may pose challenges. Valeriy Ryabykh, editor at Ukraine’s Defence Express, noted, “They could guard some sections of the Russian-Ukrainian border, which would free Russian units for fighting elsewhere.”