North Korean leader Kim Jong Un poses with troops in this image released by the state-run Korean Central News Agency, March 7, 2024. (KCNA)
Ukrainian public radio reported several North Korean soldiers stationed in Russia deserted their posts this week, fueling accounts that Pyongyang has deployed troops to Moscow’s ongoing war with neighboring Ukraine.
Around 18 North Koreans stationed four miles from the Russia-Ukraine border left their stations, according to public broadcaster Suspilne, which cited unnamed intelligence officials.
Russia’s military is searching for the deserters, who were still at large Wednesday, South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported that day, citing an unnamed Ukrainian official.
The claims come amid mounting reports that North Korea may have deployed thousands of troops to Russia in support of Moscow’s two-year invasion of Ukraine. The North has sent 10,000 soldiers to Russia, although their roles are not clear, an unidentified Western diplomat told the Kyiv Independent for a report Monday.
In June, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty saying they would solidify their alliance and provide military assistance during a conflict “without delay.”
Unnamed intelligence sources earlier this month told the Kyiv Post that six North Korean military officers were killed by a Ukrainian missile strike near Donetsk on Oct. 3. Three North Koreans were also wounded in the attack, which claimed 20 lives, according to the report.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his daily video address on YouTube also alluded to the reports of Pyongyang shipping more than just military supplies to Moscow.
“This is no longer just about transferring weapons,” he said Sunday. “It is actually about transferring people from North Korea to the occupying military forces.”
South Korea has pledged nearly $400 million in humanitarian and reconstruction aid this year to Ukraine.
Seoul will be reviewing its policy of withholding lethal aid to the Ukrainian front, due to the military pact between North Korea and Russia, South Korean national security adviser Chang Ho-jin said at a June 21 news conference.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in July said military supplies were earmarked for Ukraine but did not elaborate.
Reports of North Korean troops participating in the war was just “another piece of fake news,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a press conference Oct. 10, according to Russia news agency Tass.
The U.S. State Department is “concerned by the reports of [North Korean] soldiers fighting on behalf of Russia,” spokesman Matthew Miller said Tuesday during a press conference in Washington, D.C.
“If that’s true, it would mark a significant increase in the relationship between those two countries …,” Miller said. “It would also indicate a new level of desperation by Russia, as it continues to suffer significant casualties on the battlefield.”
South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun told lawmakers last week that it was “highly likely” North Korean forces were deployed to Ukraine.
Since last year, U.S. and South Korean intelligence agencies accused the North of providing thousands of containers of military equipment and ammunition to Russia.
