Some 2,000 North Korean soldiers have completed training in Russia and are being sent to its Western regions near the border with Ukraine, Japan’s Kyodo News said on Thursday.
The troops traveling by train are likely bound for the Kursk region, where an advance team of about 10 officers has established a base of operations to receive North Korean ground forces, reported Kyodo, citing Ukrainian military intelligence. Russia has been fighting off a Ukrainian incursion into Kursk, which borders Ukraine‘s Sumy region, since August.
The report suggests a possible first combat deployment for North Korean troops since their arrival in Russia earlier this month. On Wednesday, U.S. officials said at least 3,000 North Korean soldiers had been training in the Russian Far East since early to mid-October. Neither North Korea‘s embassy in Beijing nor Russia’s Foreign Ministry could be reached for comment after hours.
Moscow and Pyongyang have dismissed separate claims by Kyiv and Seoul that said the Kremlin had requested support from North Korea for its ongoing war in Ukraine. Earlier this week, a North Korean diplomat told the United Nations that the allegations were “groundless, stereotype rumors.”
In this photo taken from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on October 24, a Russian soldier aims from a bunker in the Russian-Ukrainian border area in Russia’s Kursk region. Ukrainian officials say North…
In this photo taken from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on October 24, a Russian soldier aims from a bunker in the Russian-Ukrainian border area in Russia’s Kursk region. Ukrainian officials say North Korean soldiers are likely to be deployed to fight in Kursk.
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Russia MOD via AP
South Korea’s spy agency published satellite imagery last week showing troop transport ships moving between the North Korean eastern seaport of Wonsan and Vladivostok in the Russia’s Far East. Pyongyang has committed up to 12,000 personnel, including special operations forces, and most will have arrived in Russia by December, the agency said on Wednesday.
The Ukrainian military source told Kyodo that the 2,000 North Korean soldiers could be deployed to Kursk or to the southwestern Rostov region, which borders the Russian army’s main offensive in the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.
It was still unclear whether North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would sanction his forces to conduct cross-border operations into Ukraine’s territory, a decision that would mark the first foreign war in North Korea’s history.
In Moscow on Thursday, the lower house of the Russian parliament ratified a mutual defense pact signed between Kim and President Vladimir Putin in June during the latter’s visit to Pyongyang. The agreement obliges the parties to provide immediately military assist if either is attacked.
Also on Thursday, President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea said his government was reviewing the possibility of sending offensive arms to Ukraine in addition to the nonlethal support it was currently providing. Its decision would depend on North Korean activity, Yoon said.
On Wednesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was the first senior U.S. official to publicly confirm reports that North Korean soldiers had traveled to Russia for military training. However, North Korea’s intent was not immediately clear, Austin said.
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House on October 23 in Washington, D.C. He said the United States believes at least 3,000 North Korean troops arrived…
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House on October 23 in Washington, D.C. He said the United States believes at least 3,000 North Korean troops arrived in Russia’s Far East for military training this month.
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Samuel Corum/Sipa via AP
Later the same day, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters at the White House that North Korean forces were transferred from Vladivostok to “multiple Russian military training sites in eastern Russia, where they are currently undergoing training.”
“We do not yet know whether these soldiers will enter into combat alongside the Russian military, but this is certainly a highly concerning probability,” Kirby said. “After completing training, these soldiers could travel to western Russia and then engage in combat against the Ukrainian military.”
Kirby added: “Russia is suffering extraordinary casualties on the battlefield every single day, but President Putin appears intent on continuing this war. If Russia is indeed forced to turn to North Korea for manpower, this would be a sign of weakness, not strength, on the part of the Kremlin.”
Update 10/24/24, 9:11 a.m. ET: This breaking news story was updated with additional information.