S. Korea Warns: N. Korea Plans New Troop Deployment to Russia

(MENAFN) South Korea's intelligence agency has warned that North Korea is expected to dispatch additional military personnel to Russia within the next two months, a local news agency reported Thursday.

Officials from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) provided this assessment during a closed-door session with the National Assembly’s intelligence committee, indicating that Pyongyang may deploy more troops to bolster Russia’s ongoing war efforts in Ukraine as early as July or August, according to the news agency.

Following the classified briefing, Rep. Park Sun-won of the ruling Democratic Party and Rep.
Lee Seong-kweun of the main opposition People Power Party informed reporters that recruitment efforts for the next wave of North Korean troop deployment appear to already be underway.

North Korea had previously sent thousands of troops to support Russian forces in Ukraine after a mutual defense pact was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during Putin’s June 2024 visit to Pyongyang.

That agreement obligates each country to provide military assistance if either is attacked by a third party.

Just last week, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoygu announced that 6,000 North Korean personnel—including 1,000 combat engineers and 5,000 military builders—will be sent to aid in mine-clearing and reconstruction operations in Russia’s Kursk region, near the Ukrainian border.

Back in April, South Korea’s intelligence agency estimated North Korean losses in the conflict to exceed 4,700 casualties, including at least 600 confirmed deaths among those fighting alongside Russian troops.

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