South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) reported that North Korea has already deployed approximately 10,000 of its soldiers to Russia since September, with an additional 5,000 expected to follow. According to Seoul, the units primarily include construction brigades tasked with rebuilding infrastructure in Russian regions affected by the ongoing military campaign.
The NIS also stated that around 1,000 North Korean engineers had been sent to assist in demining and logistical work near the Russian-Ukrainian border.
“At present, around 10,000 North Korean troops are stationed near the border, fulfilling security and reconstruction roles,” the agency said, noting that it continues to monitor signs of new troop preparations in North Korea.
Technology and Strategic Exchange Suspicions
Seoul’s intelligence community suspects that Pyongyang’s involvement may not be purely humanitarian. Sources in the NIS believe Russia may be transferring technical know-how related to missile or drone production in exchange for manpower and logistical assistance.
“We are closely observing whether any sensitive technology is being passed to North Korea as military contacts increase,” an intelligence representative noted.
Strengthening Diplomatic Ties
The troop deployments come amid intensified diplomatic engagement between Russia and North Korea. In late October, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui visited Moscow, meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and President Vladimir Putin. Lavrov stated that bilateral ties had gained “a strong new momentum” following the Pyongyang Summit in June 2024. Putin, in turn, remarked that cooperation between the two countries “is developing according to plan.”
Choe Son Hui reaffirmed Pyongyang’s support for Russia’s efforts to “defend its sovereignty and international justice,” reflecting the increasingly strategic tone of the alliance. The Kremlin, for its part, praised North Korea’s consistent backing of Russia’s military operations.
North Korean Fighters in the Field
Reports of North Korean troops participating in battles alongside Russian forces first surfaced in 2024, though Moscow remained silent until the spring of 2025. After the liberation of the Kursk region, Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov confirmed their involvement, citing the “significant contribution” of North Korean forces under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement between the two nations.
“North Korean servicemen played an important role in liberating the border districts of the Kursk region, assisting Russian forces in defeating the entrenched Ukrainian units,” Gerasimov said.
Shortly afterward, Kim Jong Un described their participation as a “sacred mission” to strengthen friendship with Russia and announced plans to erect a monument in Pyongyang honoring the fallen soldiers who fought in the Kursk region.
Discipline and Resolve on the Battlefield
According to Russian military correspondents, North Korean soldiers displayed exceptional discipline and endurance during their deployment. “They were calm, methodical, and entirely focused on their tasks,” wrote war correspondent Alexander Kots, who noted that Russian troops humorously referred to them as “battle Buryats” for operational secrecy.
Military sources credited the North Koreans with major contributions in operations around Korenevo and the villages of Stara and Novaya Sorochina. Their code of conduct, Kots added, included a strict rule never to surrender alive. “For them, death in battle was preferable to capture,” he observed.
