A strategic partnership agreement between Moscow and Pyongyang contained a secret clause on sending North Korean troops to fight Russia's full-scale war with Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reported on Oct. 23, citing an unnamed former Russian intelligence agent familiar with the matter.
The two countries signed a mutual defense pact during Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Pyongyang in June. As part of the agreement, the North Korean military announced that an engineering unit would join Russian forces on the ground in Donetsk Oblast the following month.
The secret clause reportedly allowed North Korea to send the first 1,000 of its soldiers to Ukraine to gain military experience. More North Korean troops are expected to be engaged, the source told the WSJ.
According to the newspaper, currently, most North Korean soldiers are kept at a safe distance from the front line in Ukraine. They are being shown how the Russian army handles logistics and are gaining a new understanding of drone warfare, the source said.
Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR), said that the first North Korean units were expected to arrive in Kursk Oblast on Oct. 23. Ukraine began a cross-border incursion in August and still holds significant swathes of territory there.
Earlier in October, Budanov said that the first group would consist of 2,600 soldiers.
Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin confirmed on Oct. 23 that North Korean soldiers are in Russia without elaborating on their numbers and tasks.
Two North Korean brigades of up to 6,000 personnel each are currently undergoing training in Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. According to military intelligence, some North Korean officers are already in the occupied territories of Ukraine, he said on Oct. 17.
North Korea has denied the reports, while a Kremlin spokesperson gave an evasive answer on the issue.
Martin Fornusek
