In an exclusive revelation, the government has confirmed that North Korea has deployed over 500 technical and medical support troops to Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine.
This deployment occurred even before North Korea and Russia signed a treaty on “automatic military aid” in June, according to TV Chosun.
During the June summit between North Korea and Russia, President Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un signed the “Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” which in effect revives a defunct mutual defense agreement from the 1960s.
“In case any one of two sides is put in a state of war by an armed invasion from an individual state or several states, the other side shall provide military and other assistance with all means in its possession without delay,” the agreement read.
However, it has been reported that North Korea had already been deploying troops to Russia-occupied areas in Ukraine before the treaty.
“Since before the North-Russia treaty and up until now, over 500 technical and medical support troops have been deployed,” a government official told TV Chosun. “The technical support troops are believed to be inspecting the artillery and missiles they provided.”
The South Korean government also believes that North Korea has supplied Russia with 5.2 million rounds of 152mm artillery shells and dozens of short-range ballistic missiles.
Chang Ho-jin, South Korean National Security Advisor, told reporters recently that the more weapons North Korea provides to Russia, the more they will learn about North Korean weaponry.
However, the deployment of engineering troops, scheduled for this month to aid in urban reconstruction, is likely to be delayed due to severe flood damage in North Korea.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of State has repeatedly criticized the military cooperation between North Korea and Russia.
“We have been warning about deepening cooperation between Russia and the DPRK for quite some time, including by sharing information publicly about how the DPRK has supported Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine through weapons transfers, the department said in a press release last month.
“It is something we take very seriously. These developments should be of concern to any country that cares about maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.”
The department added, “We will continue to hold the DPRK and Russia to account and impose costs on actors and entities involved in the unlawful transfer of arms from the DPRK to Russia for use in Ukraine.”
DPRK is the acronym for North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
BY YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.youngnam@koreadaily.com]
