North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un has shown off new military drones amid reports he has dispatched 3,000 additional troops to support Russia in the war in Ukraine.
On March 27, Pyongyang released images showing Kim inspecting tests of surveillance and attack drones at an undisclosed location. There are international concerns that Russia is offering North Korea drone technology in exchange for significant military aid.
On the same day Kim inspected the new drones, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted the military’s General Staff in Seoul as saying, “It seems that nearly 3,000 [additional North Korean soldiers] were transferred [to Russia] in January and February.”
The reports of new deployments come after a contingent of 11,000 troops had previously been sent from Pyongyang and troops were spotted on the battlefield in Russia’s Kursk region.
“We can say that Russia has already become dependent on North Korea in many ways, not only for missiles, but also for other weapons … as well as soldiers,” Ukrainian analyst Oleh Saakyan told Radio Free Europe’s Current Time program.
The deployment of additional troops was first reported at the end of February, but there were no precise details on the number of soldiers.
The new developments came about when Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko told state media that plans were being made for Kim to visit Moscow later this year.
Kim had already visited Moscow in 2019 and 2023 and traveled in his armored train, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also visited China several times and held summit meetings with US President Donald Trump in 2018 and 2019.
Since Moscow began its comprehensive invasion of Ukraine in 2022, relations between Moscow and Pyongyang have improved significantly.
In addition to deploying troops, North Korea has also sent medium-range missiles, howitzers and missile launchers, according to the South Korean military.
“In reality, it is becoming more and more difficult to meet the situation of the Russian economy and Russia’s mobilization demands, as in Ukraine,” says Saakyan, co-founder of the Ukrainian National Platform for Sustainability and Cohesion, a non-profit organization.
“We are already seeing more and more weapons from North Korea appearing on the war front.”
The Seoul General Staff said the new developments include additional equipment and ammunition.
This development comes at a time when Russia is demanding that Western countries end their military aid to Ukraine as a condition for a partial ceasefire agreement.
Last month, Kim said his forces would continue to support Russia as part of a “comprehensive strategic partnership”.
The deployment of soldiers to Russia began last fall. Initially, things did not go well, with reports of numerous casualties as North Korean soldiers had to contend with attacks by Ukrainian drones.
At the end of January, a Ukrainian intelligence officer told Current Time that the North Korean troops had withdrawn from the front line “due to heavy losses”.
The Ukrainian Special Operations Command told Radio Free Europe that the North Korean troops had been “forced to retreat”.
However, their performance seems to have improved recently. North Korean forces are said to have played a role in driving out Ukrainian troops during the recent fighting in the Kursk region.
*Video from the archive: Ukrainian soldiers have described some captured North Korean soldiers as experienced fighters
Their role in the fighting has raised concerns in South Korea that Kim’s forces are gaining valuable experience on the battlefield. There are also concerns about the possibility of technology transfer from Moscow to Pyongyang.
North Korean state media reported on March 27 that Kim was satisfied with the new drones and that production would be increased as drones and artificial intelligence had become the most important issues.
South Korean military spokesman Lee Sung Joon said the newly surfaced drones could contain components from Russia, but Pyongyang is likely exaggerating the capabilities of these unmanned aerial vehicles.
“We assume that these drones can be easily shot down,” he said.
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