Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun conduct a news conference at the Pentagon on Oct. 30, 2024. (Madelyn Keech/Defense Department)
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that North Korean troops are being outfitted in Russian uniforms and equipment as they move from training in eastern Russia to the country’s Kursk region near the border with Ukraine.
Austin told reporters at the Pentagon that there is a high likelihood that the North Korean troops will be used in battle and could potentially broaden the war in Ukraine, which has raged since Russian forces invaded in February 2022.
“We remain concerned that they’re going to use these troops in combat,” he said during a news conference with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun. “This is something we’re going to continue to watch and we’re going to continue to work with allies and partners to discourage Russia from employing these troops in combat.”
Pentagon officials reported earlier in the week that 10,000 North Korean soldiers were training in eastern Russia, including that a small number of them are already in Kursk with another roughly 2,000 troops moving toward the Ukraine border.
Austin acknowledged North Korean troops joining the fight in Ukraine could encourage other nations to take action. But he did not elaborate.
Kim suggested South Korea should consider sending observers and analysts to Ukraine.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin walks with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun prior to a U.S.-Republic of Korea Security Consultative Meeting at the Pentagon on Oct. 30, 2024. (Alexander Kubitza/Defense Department)
North Korean troops being deployed in Russia has sparked concerned among world leaders about what Moscow might provide to Pyongyang in exchange.
Kim said there is a “high chance” in exchange for sending troops to fight Ukraine that North Korea will ask Russia for technological help to advance its tactical nuclear weapons, intercontinental ballistic missiles, reconnaissance satellites and ballistic missile submarines.
“I believe this can result in the escalation of the security threats on the Korean Peninsula,” Kima said. However, he did not think the North Korean deployment would lead to war on the peninsula.
Austin and Kim called on North Korea to withdraw troops from Russia.
“They’re doing this because [Russian President Vladimir] Putin has lost a lot of troops,” Austin said. “He has a choice of either getting other people to help him or he can mobilize. And he doesn’t want to mobilize because then the people in Russia will begin to understand the extent of their losses.”
More than 600,000 Russian troops have been killed or injured since Putin launched the Ukraine invasion in Ukraine, Pentagon officials said earlier this month. The estimate is a sharp increase from estimates early in the year that were in the 350,000 range.
“[Putin] can end this war. He should end this war,” Austin said.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Austin on Thursday will co-host Republic of Korea Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul and Kim for the 6th U.S.-Republic of Korea Foreign and Defense Ministerial meeting.