NATO Confirms North Korean Military Deployment to Russia

If North Korean troops are destined to fight in Ukraine, it would mark a significant escalation in North Korea’s support for Russia’s illegal war, NATO says. ‘Allies have confirmed evidence of a DPRK troop deployment to Russia. If these troops are destined to fight in Ukraine, it would mark a significant escalation in North Korea’s support for Russia’s illegal war and yet another sign of Russia’s significant losses on the front lines,’ NATO spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah said on Wednesday, 23 October, in response to a query by dw.com She indicated that NATO members were consulting within the Alliance on that matter, and would discuss the situation with the Republic of Korea. US Government Data on North Korean Military in Russia On the same day, the AFP news agency reported citing a US government spokesperson that, according to Washington, ‘thousands of North Korean soldiers are in Russia receiving training’. The US government ‘does not know what their mission will be and whether they will fight in Ukraine’, the spokesperson added. ‘Russia takes huge casualties on the battlefield every day,’ the US government official continued. He said that if Moscow turned to Pyongyang to reinforce the army’s personnel, ‘it is a sign of desperation, not strength of the Kremlin.’ On 23 October, the presence of North Korean soldiers on Russian territory was also confirmed by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. In a video published on The Washington Post website, he said: ‘We are seeing evidence that there are North Korean troops that have gone to Russia. What exactly they are doing is left to be seen’, the US defense chief added. ‘If their intention is to participate in this war on Russia’s behalf, that is a very, very serious issue’, the Pentagon chief warned. – And it will have impacts not only in Europe. It will also impact the Indo-Pacific, as well.’ South Korean Intelligence Data On 23 October, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that the National Intelligence Service estimated that about 3,000 troops from the DPRK had so far been transferred to Russia to support it in its war against Ukraine. By December, Pyongyang plans to send a total of 10,000 military personnel to Russia for these purposes, the article says. North Korea denies sending military personnel to Russia.