Everything we know about North Korean troops' involvement in Russia's invasion of Ukraine

For free, real-time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox, sign up for our breaking news emails

Sign up for our free breaking news emails

The US and its allies have sounded the alarm after Volodymyr Zelensky claimed that North Korea was sending thousands of soldiers to support Russia in the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine's president claimed Thursday that his government had information that nearly 10,000 troops from North Korea were being prepared to join Russian forces fighting in his country.

Mr Zelensky made the claim, without giving further details, a day after US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said Washington and its allies were concerned about North Korea's military support for Russia.

“We have information from our intelligence services that North Korea has sent tactical personnel and officers to Ukraine,” Zelensky told reporters at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

“They are preparing 10,000 soldiers on their land, but they have not yet moved them to Ukraine or Russia.”

Mr. Zelensky warned that any intervention in the conflict by a third country, in this case North Korea, would be “the first step towards a world war.”

Both Russia and Ukraine have received arms imports from allies since Vladimir Putin's invasion in February 2022, with Ukraine's own war effort increasingly reliant on money and weapons from Western partners. But neither has so far been supported by large troop deployments from a third country.

The BBC quoted a Russian military source as saying that “numerous North Koreans” had arrived in the country's Far East. Sources on the Ukrainian side claimed that the Russian military was forming a unit of around 3,000 North Koreans, while the Russian source said the number was “absolutely nowhere near” that number.

How big is North Korea's involvement in the war against Russia?

North Korea is forging closer military ties with Russia while cutting ties with South Korea. This is prompting the United States, Japan, South Korea and eight other Western governments to form a new multinational team to oversee enforcement of sanctions against Pyongyang.

The U.S. Treasury Department alleged in May that Moscow used more than 40 North Korean ballistic missiles and other munitions in its attacks in Ukraine, violating U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reportedly signed a mutual aid agreement in June to facilitate the transfer of ammunition and missiles for Moscow's war effort.

The US State Department said there were signs that North Korea was increasing its arms sales such as artillery shells and missiles to Russia, “leading to further instability in Europe.”

Are North Koreans already fighting for Russia?

Ukrainian media reported this month that six North Korean soldiers were killed in a rocket attack in eastern Donetsk on October 3. The reports have not been confirmed.

“The issue of stationing regular troops is most likely due to mutual agreements similar to a military alliance,” South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-Hyun said earlier this month.

The Kremlin rejected the claim, calling it “another fake news story.”

If a North Korean troop deployment is confirmed, it would bolster the rapidly dwindling number of the Russian military. Neither side makes the number of victims public, but the… New York Times At least 115,000 soldiers have reportedly been killed and 500,000 wounded in Russia since the war began more than two years ago.

The Wall Street JournalCiting unnamed sources, it reported last month that about a million Ukrainians and Russians had been killed or wounded since the war began.

There have been reports in the past that North Korea sent civilian workers to help with reconstruction in occupied Ukrainian territories captured by Russia after the war began in February 2022.

What benefit does sending troops to Ukraine have for Pyongyang?

North Korea's strategic partnership with Moscow has deepened significantly since Mr Kim made a rare foreign visit to Russia last year.

Putin then visited the north this year and the two leaders signed a defense pact that called for mutual assistance “by all available means” in the event of aggression against either country.

The North would receive Russian funds to send troops to the Ukrainian front, money that Pyongyang needs to build up its nuclear forces, said Andrei Lankov, director of security analysis firm Korea Risk Group.

“Pyongyang would be well paid and potentially gain access to Russian military technology that Moscow would otherwise have been reluctant to transfer to North Korea,” Lankov told the BBC.

“It would also give their soldiers real combat experience, but it also risks exposing North Koreans to life in the West, where it is much more prosperous.”

US National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said any involvement by North Korea in the war would mean a significant strengthening of its defense ties with Russia.

“It also shows a new level of desperation for Russia as it continues to suffer significant battlefield losses in its brutal war against Ukraine,” he was quoted as saying The Guardian.

To show its support, Russia vetoed a UN resolution in March that effectively eliminated UN expert monitoring of Security Council sanctions against North Korea. This sparked Western accusations that Moscow wanted to shield its arms purchases from Pyongyang to fuel its war in Ukraine.

North Korea has shipped about 7,000 containers filled with ammunition to Russia since last year and, in return, likely filled 9,000 Russian containers with aid, South Korea claimed.

How does the USA and its allies react?

U.S. officials said this week they could not confirm Ukrainian claims about the use of North Korean soldiers but were still evaluating reports.

“We are concerned about them and … we have agreed that we will continue to closely monitor the situation,” the State Department said on Wednesday.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance had “no evidence that North Korean soldiers are involved in the fight.”

He said it was already “highly concerning” that North Korea was supporting Russia with “weapons supplies, technological supplies, innovations to help it in the war effort.”

The United States, Japan and South Korea issued a joint statement condemning North Korea for its nuclear and missile development, deepening military cooperation with Russia and engaging in alleged illegal activities to finance its weapons programs. The statement also highlighted Washington's “ironclad” commitment to defending its allies.