US says North Korean troops are in Russia and could face Ukraine

US says North Korean troops are in Russia and could face Ukraine

Event date: October 23, 2024. The United States says it has evidence that North Korea has sent thousands of troops into Russia for possible deployment in Ukraine, raising the stakes in a war that is already stretching Russian manpower and drawing in new outside support.

The supplied Guardian report said US officials believe at least 3,000 North Korean soldiers have been moved to Russia and are training at military bases there. White House spokesperson John Kirby said the troops were transported by ship from North Korea’s Wonsan region to Vladivostok before being taken to three training sites in eastern Russia. US defence secretary Lloyd Austin called the development very serious if the troops are preparing to fight alongside Russia.

The public statement matters because it goes beyond rumour. Kirby said Washington believes the soldiers are already in Russia and undergoing training, and he warned that if they are deployed against Ukraine they would be fair targets. That language shows the US sees the issue as an operational escalation, not just another sign of political alignment between Moscow and Pyongyang.

South Korea reinforced the concern. Lawmakers in Seoul said Pyongyang had promised to provide about 10,000 troops in total, with deployment expected to be completed by December. Another South Korean intelligence update had already suggested that 1,500 special forces personnel had been sent by ship. The reporting points to a phased deployment rather than a single transport event.

Moscow and Pyongyang deny the claims. The Kremlin has dismissed similar South Korean allegations as fake news, and North Korean representatives have called them groundless rumours. That denial sits alongside a deeper military relationship, including a mutual defence treaty signed at a summit in June and repeated pledges to strengthen ties.

The timing is also telling. Austin said the reported North Korean deployment could reflect Russian manpower strain after enormous casualties in a war of attrition. US officials speaking anonymously estimated more than 600,000 Russian troops had been killed or wounded. If that figure is even roughly accurate, the need for outside manpower becomes a serious strategic problem for Moscow.

Ukraine has long said North Korea is already involved. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Pyongyang of preparing to send 10,000 soldiers and urged allies to respond. The new US assessment gives those warnings more credibility, even if the exact numbers and final role of the troops remain uncertain.

For now, the key change is that Washington has moved from suspicion to public confirmation. If the reported deployment is real and the soldiers reach combat roles, the war in Ukraine would enter a new phase in which one of the world’s most isolated states is tied directly to the front line.