North Korea boosts support for Russia to include drone operators, Ukraine says
The new contingent includes 400 drone operators and 1,000 engineers and deminers, and Ukraine says it could help Russia free up front-line troops.
- Major General Vadym Skibitskiy, Deputy Head of Ukrainian Defense Intelligence, confirmed that 8,500 North Korean troops have arrived in Russia, including 400 drone operators capable of attacking targets inside Ukraine.
- North Korea signed a mutual defense pact with Russia two years ago and has supported Moscow's military operations since late 2024, with state media regularly showing troops training inside Russia.
- An estimated 10,000 North Korean soldiers deployed in April 2025 suffered significant casualties using suicidal tactics to rush Ukrainian positions; wounded troops returned home to train colleagues in drone warfare.
- President Vladimir Putin may request up to 50,000 additional North Korean troops in September, potentially straining Ukraine's already depleted air defense capabilities as supplies of U.S. Patriot interceptors near exhaustion.
- Kim Yo Jong denied reports of further mass deployments as "groundless," while NATO tensions rise after President Donald Trump announced scaled-down military drills with South Korea to avoid antagonizing North Korea.
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48 Articles
According to Ukrainian intelligence, 8,500 North Korean soldiers were deployed in the Kursk region of Russia. In total, Pyongyang would be preparing to send 50,000 men. "They should be forced to hold the rear positions," sums up Gwendoline Debono, special envoy to Ukraine. - Ukraine: demanded by Putin, soon 50,000 North Korean soldiers "should be forced to hold the rear positions" Russian (International).
The Russian troops attacked the largest Krivogo Rog, with 16 dead known; North Korea sent another 8,500 military personnel to Russia, including drone operators. Respondent.net highlights the main events of yesterday.
Claims have emerged that the size of the North Korean military currently deployed in Russia amounts to 8,500 troops. Vadym Skivitsky, Deputy Director of Ukraine's Main Directorate of Defense Intelligence (HUR), stated on CNN on the 21st (local time) that approximately 8,500 North Korean troops are stationed in Russia. He also added that they are primarily stationed in the Kursk region of Russia. According to Deputy Director Skivitsky's claims, t…
North Korea boosts support for Russia to include drone operators, says Ukraine
Kyiv - A new wave of North Korean troops, already numbering 8,500 in Russia, contains a drone unit that could attack targets inside Ukraine, according to a senior Ukrainian intelligence official.
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Shin Jae-woo = The North Korean military deployed to Russia currently numbers 8,500 personnel, including those capable of reconnoitering or attacking targets within Ukraine...
Trump Needs to Forget About Iran For a Sec: Russia and North Korea are Getting Closer and That Means Ukraine War Trouble
North Korea keeps expanding its military involvement in Russia’s war against Ukraine, with the isolated dictatorship now supplying Moscow with hundreds of trained drone operators and sending ballistic missiles that could be used to strike Ukrainian infrastructure in the coming months. Major General Vadym Skibitskyi, the deputy head of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, says that a new contingent of roughly 8,500 North Korean personnel is also alrea…
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