The South Korean intelligence agency stated that over 3,000 North Korean soldiers have been deployed to Russia to support the country’s operations in Ukraine. The Russian authorities are reportedly paying these soldiers approximately $2,000 per month.
According to reports from the South Korean news agency Yonhap, the director of the National Intelligence Service of South Korea (referred to as the NIS) Zhao Taiyong reported to the National Assembly on October 23 that the number of North Korean troops sent to Russia had exceeded 3,000 as of that day, with the number expected to increase to over 10,000 by December.
The NIS pointed out that the North Korean troops deployed to Russia have not yet entered the battlefield, with most of them scattered in various training facilities within Russia, likely still in the adaptation phase. Russian instructors believe that North Korean soldiers are physically fit and have high morale, but they lack understanding of modern warfare such as drone attacks, which could lead to higher casualties if deployed to the frontlines.
The South Korean NIS also confirmed that the Russian military is selecting a large number of personnel capable of providing Korean language translation and conducting specialized training for North Korean soldiers regarding military equipment usage, drones, and other aspects.
Internally in North Korea, there is a complete silence on the deployment of troops, but rumors related to this issue are gradually spreading. There are indications that certain North Korean authorities have taken measures to thoroughly “seal off” and effectively control the families of the deployed troops by isolating them collectively in a certain location.
As reported by Radio Free Asia, the NIS mentioned on the same day that Russia will pay each North Korean soldier deployed to support the Russia-Ukraine war a monthly salary of $2,000.
This amount is significantly higher than the current salary of North Korean soldiers. The Korean language department of the radio station reported last month that the average salary of North Korean soldiers has increased from 100 to 300 North Korean won (0.6 to 1.8 cents) to 1,000 to 3,000 North Korean won (6 to 18 cents), which marks a tenfold increase.
The news platform United24 operated by the Ukrainian government reported that most of these wages are likely to “still be owned by the (North Korean) state.”
North Korea typically retains a significant portion of the wages of its overseas workers, but it remains unclear how much each soldier will actually receive from the $2,000.
Yonhap reported that South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol stated on October 24 that North Korea’s deployment of troops to support Russia violates the UN Charter and the decisions of the UN Security Council, presenting a provocative act threatening the security of the Korean Peninsula, Europe, and even the entire world, and South Korea will not stand idly by.
President Yoon made these statements during a meeting with visiting Polish President Andrzej Duda at the Blue House in Seoul. He reiterated South Korea and Poland’s strong condemnation of North Korea’s provocative development of nuclear weapons and its illegal military cooperation with Russia, emphasizing that South Korea will not ignore these actions and will take necessary steps in cooperation with the international community as the situation regarding North Korea-Russia military cooperation progresses.
However, North Korea vehemently denies its deployment of troops to support Russia. The North Korean Permanent Mission to the United Nations refuted the news released by the South Korean government regarding North Korea’s deployment of troops to support Russia on October 21, calling it “baseless rumors.”