Photo credit; BBC
North Korea has shipped 1,500 special forces troops to Russia.
Reuters reports that they will be deployed in the war against Ukraine.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said it had been working with the Ukrainian Intelligence Service and had used facial recognition artificial intelligence technology to identify North Korean officers in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region supporting Russian forces firing North Korean missiles.
North Kora has shipped artillery rounds, ballistic missiles and anti-tank rockets to Russia in more than 13,000 containers since August last year. According to the agency, based on the remnants of weapons recovered from Ukraine’s battlefront. In all, over eight million artillery and rocket rounds have been shipped to Russia.
According to the spy agency, the direct military operation between Russia and North Korea that foreign media have reported has now been officially confirmed.”
Earlier, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called an unscheduled security meeting with key intelligence, military, and national security officials to discuss North Korean troops’ involvement in Russia’s war against Ukraine. According to Yoon’s office, South Korea, together with its allies, has been closely tracking North Korea’s dispatch to Russia from the initial stages. It added that South Korea will respond to the North’s activities with all available means without elaborating on what actions it might use.
South Korea has emerged as a significant arms exporter by selling fighter jets, mechanized howitzers, and missiles. It has come under pressure from some Western allies, including the US, to help arm Ukraine with lethal weapons. However, it has stopped short of openly doing so.
The White House National Security Council could not confirm reports that North Korean troops were fighting for Russia, a spokesman said, but if true, “this would mark a dangerous development in Russia’s war with Ukraine.”
According to South Korea’s intelligence service, vessels belonging to Russia’s Pacific Fleet were detected moving about 1,500 North Korean special forces troops to Vladivostok from October 8 to 13. The shipment of troops is expected to resume soon. In addition to Russian military uniforms and weapons, they have been supplied with identification documents for when they are deployed for combat.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused North Korea on Thursday of deploying officers alongside Russia and preparing to send 10,000 soldiers to help Russia’s war effort. However, NATO chief Mark Rutte said there was no evidence of North Korea’s presence. Moreover, Russia and North Korea both denied engagement in arms transfers. The Kremlin has also refuted South Korea’s assertions that North Korea may have sent some military personnel to Russia.
