Lee Hyo-jin covers the Bank of Korea, the banking industry and broader financial news. Her previous beats include foreign affairs, North Korea and general reporting on Korean society.
Why did NK, Russia take months to confirm troop deployment?
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a meeting in Pyongyang, June 19, 2024. AFP-Yonhap
By Lee Hyo-jin
Seoul blasts Pyongyang's announcement as 'confession of criminal activities'
North Korea and Russia have officially confirmed Pyongyang's deployment of troops to support Russia's war in Ukraine for the first time, a move analysts interpret as a calculated signal that the two countries aim to cement their military alliance beyond the ongoing war.
The announcement, made just days before Russia’s May 9 Victory Day celebrations, carries both symbolic and practical implications, analysts said, including North Korea seeking to gain leverage over the fate of its captives in Ukraine.
On Monday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korea’s state-run media, praised its troops fighting alongside Russian forces in the Kursk region, calling them "heroes" in operations to repel what it described as "Ukraine’s invasion of Russian territory."
"The operations for liberating the Kursk area to repel the adventurous invasion of the Russian Federation by the Ukrainian authorities were victoriously concluded," the KCNA reported, quoting the Central Military Commission, noting that the operations were conducted under the direct order of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
A few hours after North Korea’s acknowledgment, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed gratitude to Pyongyang for its troop deployment.
"Our North Korean friends' move was guided by a sense of solidarity, justice and genuine comradery," Putin said in a statement published on the Kremlin website.
"We highly appreciate this and are sincerely grateful, personally to the Chairman of the State Affairs Committee, Comrade Kim Jong-un, as well as to the entire leadership and the people of North Korea."
This exchange follows Russia’s first public admission of the deployment two days earlier, when Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, reported to President Vladimir Putin in a video meeting on Saturday and praised the role of North Korean servicemen in combat missions.
Gerasimov added that the troop deployment was in line with the Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership signed by the two countries in June 2024.
A captured North Korean soldier is seen in this photo posted on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's X account, Jan. 13. Yonhap
Analysts told The Korea Times that the timing of these coordinated announcements — coming six months after South Korean intelligence agencies raised concerns about North Korean troop deployments — was strategic amid ongoing peace talks over the war, now in its third year.
"As peace talks progress, North Korea may have asked Russia to formalize the deployment, cementing a military partnership that extends beyond the Ukraine war. Both countries likely saw making the deployment official as having more to gain than to lose," said Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies.
He also noted that the announcement reflects North Korea's confidence that internal dissent over the deployment would be minimal, as the regime has justified the troop involvement to its people through a mix of propaganda and rewards for the families of fallen soldiers.
Doo Jin-ho, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, described the confirmation as a "win-win" for both countries, with Russia seeking to use North Korea as a valuable asset in a prolonged war.
"The recapture of Kursk with North Korean support has significantly elevated Pyongyang’s strategic standing among Russia’s allies, raising the prospect of a deeper military alliance," Doo said.
"The confirmation is also seen as a preemptive move to deter Ukraine's further revelations about North Korean prisoners of war and to block the possibility of POWs being transferred to South Korea," he added.
South Korean and Ukrainian officials have been discussing the potential transfer of two North Koreans who were captured in the Kursk region in January. But controversy has lingered over their official POW status, as neither North Korea nor Russia had previously acknowledged the deployment.
The latest announcements from Pyongyang and Moscow have drawn attention, particularly amid growing speculation that the North Korean leader may travel to Moscow to attend Russia’s Victory Day celebrations on May 9.
Troops march during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade in Saint Petersburg, Russia, April 22. AP-Yonhap
However, experts believe an imminent visit is unlikely.
"The North's ties with Russia, the only ally that has openly sent troops to war, have grown so strong that Kim's presence does not need to be showcased at the Victory Day parade alongside other heads of state," Doo said.
Instead, Kim may choose to visit Russia in June for a bilateral summit with Putin, the analyst said, around the anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty on June 19, 2024.
Meanwhile, the South Korean government condemned North Korea’s acknowledgment of the troop deployment, calling it a "confession of criminal activities."
“North Korean troops' participation in the war in Ukraine is a clear violation of the U.N. Charter and Security Council resolutions. By officially acknowledging this, they have effectively confessed to committing a criminal act,” defense ministry spokesperson Jeon Ha-kyou said during a briefing.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also criticized Pyongyang’s acknowledgment, calling it "mocking the international community" and vowing to take action in response to the security threats posed by military ties between North Korea and Russia.