North Korea has sent about 3,000 troops to Russia to support the Kremlin’s forces in its war in Ukraine, and thousands more were expected to follow, South Korean lawmakers said on Wednesday. The country’s national intelligence agency, NIS, told lawmakers that the first batch of troops was already in Russia, and their deployment was expected to be completed by December.
The North, with 1.2 million soldiers, has one of the world’s largest standing militaries. It hasn’t fought in large-scale conflicts since the 1950-53 Korean War. But the move marks a significant shift in Pyongyang’s military strategy as it seeks to improve its deterrence against Washington and Seoul. It would also be a chance to acquire advanced Russian weapons technology, allowing it to modernize its outdated conventional systems.
Despite the concerns, Russia has dismissed reports of North Korean troop deployments to Ukraine as “fake news.” President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, called the claim that a large number of troops from the reclusive state are in Ukraine’s Kursk region, near the border with Russia, a lie and a “provocation.” But the U.S. defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, has said the presence of North Korean troops in Russia could be a significant escalation and threaten regional stability.
He added that he was not sure whether the presence of the North Korean troops in Russia would be a factor in deciding the course of action for NATO forces in eastern Ukraine. However, he emphasized that the alliance was not “hiding” its determination to defend Ukraine and that the United States was ready to provide lethal aid if necessary.
Analysts say the Russians will likely offer Pyongyang a range of military technologies in return for the soldiers. They could include surveillance satellites, submarines, and advanced anti-aircraft systems.
They are also likely to get economic support from Russia, a key source of cash for the North’s state coffers. The reclusive nation, heavily sanctioned for its nuclear weapons program, earned $540 million last year from arms sales to the Kremlin, according to a think tank linked to South Korea’s NIS.
The NIS chief told lawmakers that the first batch of North Korean troops were being trained on drones in Russia, but it was not clear what role they would play in Ukraine. He said the NIS had detected signs that Pyongyang is relocating families of soldiers chosen to be deployed to Russia to particular sites to isolate them from the rest of society. He added that NIS had heard from some family members of those chosen for the dispatch that they were so distraught over their loved ones’ deployment that they were suffering mental and physical health problems.
