More than 1,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed or wounded in Russia’s war with Ukraine, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
The new figure follows a report by Seoul’s spy agency to MPs last week, which said at least 100 North Korean soldiers had been killed since entering combat in December.
Pyongyang has sent thousands of troops to reinforce the Russian military, including to the Kursk border region, where Ukrainian forces seized territory earlier this year.
“Through various sources of information and intelligence, we assess that North Korean troops who have recently engaged in combat with Ukrainian forces have suffered around 1,100 casualties,” the JCS said in a statement yesterday.
“We are particularly interested in the possibility of additional deployments” of North Korean soldiers to aid Russia’s war effort, the JCS added.
Pyongyang is reportedly “preparing for the rotation or additional deployment of soldiers”, the JCS said.
Intelligence also suggests that the nuclear-armed North is “producing and providing self-destructible drones” to Russia to further assist Moscow in its fight against Ukraine, it added.
The North was also supplying “240mm rocket launchers and 170mm self-propelled artillery” for the Russian army, the JCS said.
Seoul’s military noted that North Korea was aiming to modernise its conventional warfare capabilities based on combat experience in the Russia-Ukraine war.
“This could lead to an increase in the North’s military threat toward us,” it said.
The latest findings align with a report by the National Intelligence Service, which informed lawmakers that “Russia might offer reciprocal benefits” for North Korea’s military contributions, including “modernising North Korea’s conventional weaponry”.
North Korea and Russia have strengthened their military ties since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A landmark defence pact between Pyongyang and Moscow, signed in June, came into force this month.
Experts say North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is keen to acquire advanced technology from Russia and battle experience for his troops. — AFP
