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By Billal Rahman and Michael D. Carroll
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North Korea has deployed around 10,000 troops to train in Russia, the Pentagon reported on Monday, significantly increasing Washington's previous estimate of 3,000 from last week.
"We believe that the DPRK has sent around 10,000 soldiers in total to train in eastern Russia that will probably augment Russian forces near Ukraine over the next several weeks," Deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh told journalists, using an abbreviation for North Korea's official name.
Singh reported that some North Korean soldiers have already advanced closer to Ukraine and are believed to be moving toward Russia's Kursk border region, where Russian forces have been struggling to repel a Ukrainian incursion.
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North Korean Troops Could Significantly Affect War
Royal United Services Institute's Associate Fellow Samuel Cranny-Evans told Newsweek that tens of thousands of North Korean troops could "significantly" affect the war effort.
"The affect really depends on how they are used and how many North Korean troops are sent," said Cranny-Evans. "If they are used as front line troops, and tens of thousands are sent overall, they could be a very significant contribution to Russia's war effort."
He continued "If only a few thousand are deployed, then the affect is unlikely to be significant, especially compared with the supply of North Korean ammunition."
Earlier on Monday, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte confirmed recent Ukrainian intelligence reports indicating that some North Korean military units have already arrived in Russia's Kursk region.
Intensification Warning
Western officials warn that the addition of thousands of North Korean soldiers to Europe's largest conflict since World War II will intensify the strain on Ukraine's already stretched and fatigued military forces. This deployment is also expected to heighten geopolitical tensions across the Korean Peninsula and the broader Indo-Pacific region, affecting countries including Japan and Australia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to reshape global power dynamics, aiming to establish a counterweight to Western influence. Last week, he hosted a summit of BRICS nations, which included leaders from China and India, in Russia.
Additionally, he has actively sought direct assistance for the war from Iran, which has provided drones, and North Korea, which has reportedly sent substantial ammunition supplies, according to Western governments.
Speaking to reporters in Brussels, Rutte described the North Korean deployment as "a significant escalation" of Pyongyang's role in the conflict and called it "a dangerous expansion of Russia's war."
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is scheduled to meet with his South Korean counterpart at the Pentagon later this week, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh reported. The two leaders will discuss the deployment of North Korean soldiers in Ukraine. Singh confirmed that there would be no restrictions on the use of U.S.-provided weapons against those forces.
"If we see DPRK troops moving in toward the front lines, they are co-belligerents in the war," said Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh, using the acronym for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, or North Korea. "This is a calculation that North Korea has to make."
What Is the Russian Response?
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dismissed Rutte's remarks, pointing out that Pyongyang and Moscow signed a joint security pact last June, though he did not confirm the presence of North Korean soldiers in Russia.
Lavrov further alleged that Western military instructors had already been covertly deployed to Ukraine to assist its forces in operating long-range weapons supplied by Western allies.
"Western military personnel long have been working in Ukraine," Lavrov said after a meeting with the Kuwaiti foreign minister in Moscow.
Ukraine, already facing intense Russian pressure in the eastern Donetsk region, could face additional challenges following next week's U.S. presidential election. A victory for Donald Trump might lead to a reduction in critical U.S. military support, a prospect that could significantly affect Ukraine's defense capabilities.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press
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