NATO chief confirms North Korean troops are in Russia’s Kursk

BRUSSELS: NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte confirmed on Monday that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and military units have been deployed to its Kursk region, while Ukraine urged allies to supply weapons and allow deep strikes into Russia in response.

“The deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea is a threat to both Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security,” Rutte told reporters after NATO officials and diplomats were briefed by a South Korean delegation.

Ukrainian military intelligence said on Thursday that the first North Korean units had already been recorded in the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian troops have been operating since staging a major incursion in August.

Rutte said the North Korean deployment represented “a significant escalation” of Pyongyang’s involvement in “Russia’s illegal war” in Ukraine, a breach of U.N. Security Council resolutions and a “dangerous expansion” of the conflict.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that Kyiv had been warning about the deployment for weeks, yet there was no strong response from allies.

“Now NATO Secretary General confirmed this. The bottom line: listen to Ukraine. The solution: lift restrictions on our long-range strikes against Russia now,” he said on X.

The Kremlin had initially dismissed reports about a North Korean deployment as “fake news”. But Putin on Thursday did not deny that North Korean troops were currently in Russia and said that it was Moscow’s business how to implement a partnership treaty with Pyongyang.

A North Korean foreign ministry official did not confirm media reports about a troop deployment to Russia but said if Pyongyang had taken such action, he believed it would be in line with international norms.

The deployment of North Korean troops was a sign of “growing desperation” on the part of Putin, Rutte said.

“Over 600,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in Putin’s war and he is unable to sustain his assault on Ukraine without foreign support,” Rutte said.

The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak said sanctions alone would not be a sufficient response to North Korean involvement.

He added that Kyiv needs “weapons and a clear plan to prevent North Korea’s expanded involvement”.

“The enemy understands strength. Our allies have this strength,” Yermak said on X.

WHAT ARE THE REPORTS?

Ukraine’s military intelligence service said last week that the first units of North Korean troops trained in Russia had been deployed in the Kursk region, a Russian border area where Ukrainian forces staged a major incursion in August.

A total of around 12,000 North Korean troops, including 500 officers and three generals, were already in Russia, and training was taking place on five military bases, the agency said.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said North Korea had previously deployed officers in Russian-occupied territory within Ukraine to assess the situation before deploying troops.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) said it had tracked around 3,000 troops, including special forces, shipped by Russian naval vessels to the country’s Far East for training and acclimatising at military bases there, probably to be deployed for combat in the war.

The South also said it had used AI facial recognition technology to identify a delegation of dozens of North Korean officers visiting frontline areas in Ukraine, to give guidance on North Korea-made KN-23 ballistic missiles fired at targets there.

The delegation included a key figure in the North’s missile development, identified by analysts at Seoul-based NK PRO as Ri Song Jin, glimpsed in photographs last year while accompanying leader Kim Jong Un to factories that turn out missiles.

The troops have been supplied with Russian military uniforms, weapons and false identification documents ahead of being deployed for combat, it said.

WHY WOULD NORTH KOREA HELP RUSSIA?

Putin has said a treaty he signed with Kim Jong Un during a visit to Pyongyang in June included a mutual assistance clause for each side to help the other repel external aggression.

Analysts say North Korea could benefit from providing weapons and troops by gaining experience and insight from operating on a battlefield.

Pyongyang, heavily sanctioned for its nuclear weapons programme, also appears to be gaining major imports of oil and other products from Russia, according to foreign intelligence agencies and commercial satellite imagery examined by analysts.

A report by a think tank affiliated with South Korea’s NIS estimated that the cash-strapped North earned about $540 million last year from arms sales to Russia.

WHAT HAS THE REACTION BEEN?

Last week South Korea said it had protested the deployment to Russia’s ambassador, and dispatched a senior delegation to brief NATO on Monday.

Seoul has also said it is considering phased countermeasures, including possible changes to its stance against directly providing weapons to Ukraine.

Ukraine’s top presidential official said on Monday that sanctions would not be a sufficient response to the deployment and called for “weapons and a clear plan to prevent North Korea’s expanded involvement”.

Germany and Austria summoned North Korea’s top envoys in their countries on Wednesday to register their concerns.

The leaders of Britain and Finland have said Russia’s use of North Korean troops would be a sign of desperation.

China’s foreign ministry said on Thursday it was not aware of North Korean troops being in Russia and it hoped “all parties will promote a de-escalation of the situation and commit themselves to a political solution” in Ukraine.

WHAT CHALLENGES DO NORTH KOREAN TROOPS PRESENT TO UKRAINE?

Russia has fired dozens of North Korea-made ballistic missiles and has received large numbers of artillery shells and anti-tank rockets, say South Korea, Ukraine, the United States and independent researchers.

Military analysts say there are questions on how Russia would incorporate North Korean troops on the ground, and that, like the weapons, an infusion of troops was unlikely to be a game changer but could help prolong the conflict.

“Russia’s war zone has expanded significantly, and with Ukrainian forces making advances even into Russian territory, North Korean troops could play role in defending against such incursions,” said Kim Yong-hyun, of South Korea’s Dongguk University. “While North Korea’s involvement may not be decisive for Russia, it could still provide meaningful support.”