North Korea has sent additional troops to Russia following heavy casualties among its forces deployed to the front lines of the Ukraine war, according to South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS). The intelligence agency said on Thursday it was assessing the scale of the new deployment but confirmed North Korean soldiers had been redeployed in Russia's Kursk region in early February.
"It appears that there has been a deployment of additional troops, but their size is still being examined," the NIS stated, according to South Korea's state-funded Yonhap News Agency. The redeployment follows an earlier withdrawal after North Korean units suffered significant losses under Ukrainian drone and artillery attacks.
North Korea's military involvement in the war has steadily expanded since last year. South Korean, U.S., and Ukrainian intelligence agencies estimate that between 10,000 and 12,000 North Korean soldiers were originally deployed to Russia in 2023. In January, the NIS reported that at least 300 North Korean soldiers had been killed and 2,700 injured. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy placed the total number of killed or wounded North Koreans at 4,000, while U.S. assessments were lower, around 1,200.
South Korea's JoongAng Ilbo newspaper, citing unidentified sources, reported that an additional 1,000 to 3,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to the Kursk region between January and February. Defense analysts say North Korean troops have been vulnerable on the battlefield due to their lack of combat experience and unfamiliarity with the terrain. They have also faced difficulties in communicating with Russian commanders.
Reports from Ukrainian military officials indicate that North Korean troops have been used in high-risk frontline operations. Some commanders have claimed that Russian forces have ordered North Korean soldiers to spearhead attacks and instructed them to take their own lives rather than surrender.
The deepening military ties between Pyongyang and Moscow have raised concerns among U.S. and South Korean officials, who fear that Russia may compensate North Korea with advanced weapons technology that could bolster its nuclear program. North Korea is also expected to receive economic aid and other forms of support from Russia in return for its military assistance.
The partnership between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin has grown significantly since their rare back-to-back summits in 2023 and June 2024. In November, Kim ratified a mutual defense treaty with Russia, which obligates both nations to provide military aid if either faces external aggression.
