At least 3,000 N. Korean troops sent to eastern Russia this month: White House official
This image, captured from a video released on Telegram by Astra, an independent Russian media outlet, shows a group of soldiers believed to be North Koreans dispatched to Russia gathered at an unknown location, Oct. 23. Yonhap
North Korea sent at least 3,000 troops to eastern Russia earlier this month, a White House official confirmed Wednesday, raising a "highly concerning" probability that they could engage in combat to support Russia's war in Ukraine after finishing training.
National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby offered the United States' assessment that Pyongyang moved those troops to Russia by ship during a period from early- to mid-October, but stressed that Washington does not yet know what the troops' mission is.
The official also warned that should North Korean troops deploy to fight against Ukrainian forces, they could become "fair targets," and that there could be casualties among them.
"We assess that these soldiers traveled by ship from the Wonsan area in North Korea to Vladivostok, Russia. These soldiers then traveled onward to multiple Russian military training sites in eastern Russia where they are currently undergoing training," Kirby told a press briefing, referring to the North's eastern coastal city and Russia's Far Eastern city.
"We do not yet know whether these soldiers will enter into combat alongside the Russian military, but this is certainly a highly concerning probability. After completing training, these soldiers could travel to western Russia and then engage in combat against the Ukrainian military," he added.
Kirby noted that the North Korean soldiers in point are currently getting basic combat and familiarization training at three Russian sites.
The U.S.' analysis meshes with the assessment by Seoul's key intelligence agency that about 3,000 North Korean soldiers were thought to have been sent to Russia, with a total of 10,000 troops expected to be deployed by December.
In the coming days, Washington plans to announce a "significant" sanctions tranche targeting the enablers of Russia's war in Ukraine located outside of Russia, Kirby stressed.
"Russia's cooperation with the North Korean military is in violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions, which prohibit the procurement of arms from North Korea and military arms training," he said. "This move is likewise a violation."
The official pointed out that if Russia is forced to turn to North Korea for military manpower, it would demonstrate an "unprecedented" level of direct military cooperation between the two countries with security implications for Europe and the Indo-Pacific.
Kirby warned of potential North Korean casualties that can occur should the troops engage in combat.
"If they do deploy to fight against Ukraine, they're fair targets, and the Ukrainian military will defend themselves against North Korean soldiers the same way they are defending themselves against Russian soldiers," he said.
"So the possibility that there could be dead and wounded North Korean soldiers from fighting against Ukraine is absolutely real if they get deployed."
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby speaks at the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, D.C., Oct. 23. AP-Yonhap
The confirmation came after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters in Rome that the U.S. saw evidence that Pyongyang has dispatched soldiers to Russia.
"Our analysts are ... they continue to look at this. Now we are seeing evidence that there are North Korean troops that have gone to Russia," Austin said during press availability. "What exactly they are doing is left to be seen. These are things that we need to sort out."
Asked to elaborate on the intention behind the troop deployment and what North Korea might get from Russia in return, Austin said that the U.S. is trying to gain "better fidelity" on those issues.
"Why are the troops there? We'll continue to pull this thread and see what happens here," he said. "If they're co-belligerents, if their intention is to participate in this war on Russia's behalf, that is a very, very serious issue."
Despite Seoul's confirmation of the North's deployment last week, Washington had not confirmed it, stoking speculation that there could be a gap in intelligence analysis between the two allies.
Meanwhile, Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for Russia's foreign ministry, dismissed South Korea's intelligence analysis on the North's troop dispatch as "fake news."
She also warned that Seoul could face "security consequences" should it get involved in the Ukrainian crisis, as Seoul has vowed to take "phased" measures in response to deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow, including its possible consideration of arms support to Ukraine.
"They should think about the security consequences if it gets involved in the Ukrainian crisis," she said during a press briefing through an English-language interpreter. "The Russian Federation will react on those aggressive steps, if our citizens are under threats, under peril." (Yonhap)