Seoul: North Korea has not commented on its reported deployment of troops to Russia, a move that signals deeper military collaboration between Pyongyang and Moscow amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. South Korea’s intelligence agency recently revealed that approximately 12,000 North Korean special forces have been sent to assist Russia, with 1,500 already stationed in Russia’s Far East.
According to Yonhap News Agency, this deployment marks the first large-scale sending of North Korean ground troops overseas, although the country has previously sent smaller contingents abroad to generate income. The silence from North Korea on this significant military move comes as no surprise, as the regime has historically been secretive about its international military operations. The last public comment from North Korea regarding the Ukraine conflict was on October 12, when state media reported on alleged chemical weapons use by Ukraine, citing a Russian military source.
Despite the revelations by South Korea’s Natio
nal Intelligence Service, neither North Korea nor Russia has officially acknowledged the troop deployment. Experts suggest that Pyongyang’s reticence might stem from concerns about domestic backlash, as publicizing the involvement in a foreign war could unsettle the North Korean populace. “It is unlikely that North Korea will confirm this before Russia does,” stated Hong Min, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification. He added that confirmation from Western powers such as the United States or NATO has yet to occur, leaving open questions about the extent of North Korean forces’ involvement in combat operations.
The South Korean government continues to monitor the situation closely. “We are keeping all possibilities open and are carefully observing the situation,” commented Koo Byoung-sam, a spokesperson for South Korea’s unification ministry during a recent press briefing. This ongoing development highlights the intricate and covert nature of military operations and alliances i
n the region, particularly against the backdrop of the prolonged conflict in Ukraine.