South Korea’s intelligence agency said on Friday that North Korea has dispatched troops to assist Russia in its war against Ukraine, a development that could intensify the standoff between North Korea and the west.
In a statement on its website, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) said that Russian navy ships transferred 1,500 North Korean special operation forces to the port city of Vladivostok between 8 and 13 October and were now undergoing training.
“The North Korean soldiers … are expected to be deployed to the frontlines as soon as they complete their adaptation training,” the agency said, adding that more North Korean troops are expected to be sent to Russia soon.
NIS said North Korean soldiers were given Russian military uniforms and Russian-made weapons and were issued with fake ID cards of residents of the Yakutia and Buryatia, two regions in Siberia.
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Additionally, South Korean media said on Friday, citing anonymous sources, that Pyongyang has decided to dispatch a total of 12,000 troops, formed into four brigades, to Russia. The NIS did not immediately confirm these reports.
The statements come a day after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country had intelligence reports that 10,000 North Korean soldiers were preparing to enter the war
Additionally, South Korean media said on Friday, citing anonymous sources, that Pyongyang has decided to dispatch a total of 12,000 troops, formed into four brigades, to Russia. The NIS did not immediately confirm these reports.
The statements come a day after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country had intelligence reports that 10,000 North Korean soldiers were preparing to enter the war
Mark Rutte, the (new) NATO Secretary General, said in some article I read that NATO does not yet have confirmation, but that “this may change”.
kagis
Here’s the transcript on NATO’s website of a followup:
https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/opinions_229585.htm
Binna Chung, Yonhap
Thank you. Binna from Yonhap News Agency. Secretary General, the South Korean Spy Agency today announced that North Korea has decided to send large scale troops to Russia and including special forces. I know that yesterday, you said you have no evidence, but since the situation has changed overnight, I want to ask you this question again. Thank you.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte
Well again, obviously, we are in close contact with all our partners, particularly, of course, the Republic of Korea. And yesterday, we have been meeting here with the IP4 partners, including Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Korea. So we will certainly have that conversation with them to get all the evidence on the table. So at this moment, our official position is that we cannot confirm reports that North Koreans are actively now as soldiers engaged in the war effort. But this, of course, might change. And anyway, even if North Korea is not physically there at the battlefield, then still they are helping to fuel Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine in every way they can. And together with others like Iran, China’s playing a role here, obviously, and of course, Russia itself.
That’s from today.
