North Korea is sending fresh troops to further bolster Russia’s military campaign. Among these troops are roughly 400 members skilled in operating drones, who Ukraine’s military intelligence agency says are capable of using drones for surveillance and strikes inside Ukraine.
The information comes from Major General Vadym Skibitsky, deputy chief of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Directorate. He claims roughly 8,500 North Korean troops are currently stationed in Russia. Most of them have been deployed in Russia’s Kursk region. This force also includes roughly 1,000 engineers and mine-clearance personnel.
Skibitsky said many of the roughly 400 drone operators in this new group of North Korean troops gained drone-warfare experience either during earlier deployments or through training. Their drones could be used to observe and strike various targets in Ukraine.
Possible request for 50,000 more troops
Ukrainian intelligence believes Russian President Vladimir Putin may ask North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a further 50,000 troops at a meeting next September. However, Kim’s influential sister, Kim Yo Jong, has rejected such claims as “baseless and fabricated.”
According to Skibitsky, North Korean troops are unlikely to fight directly on Ukrainian territory. Instead, they may be used to strengthen Russia’s rear-line positions, freeing up a portion of Russian troops to carry out attacks on Ukraine’s front line. He also claims that roughly 25,000 North Korean troops have so far been deployed to Russia or rotated through duty there.
North Korea’s troop deployment began in 2024
According to Ukrainian intelligence, North Korea’s first major troop deployment to Russia’s Kursk region began in October 2024. Those troops were used to prevent Ukrainian forces from entering Russian territory.
It is believed that roughly 10,000 North Korean troops were initially sent to Russia. A significant number of them became casualties. The Ukrainian side claims North Korean troops extensively used frontal assaults and high-risk tactics in fighting Russian forces.
North Korea did not initially publicly acknowledge sending troops. However, in April 2025, the country confirmed for the first time that its troops were taking part in the war against Ukraine.
Skibitsky also claims that North Korean soldiers wounded in the war have returned home and spread their experience of modern warfare, including drone combat, among their colleagues.
Missile support also increasing
Ukraine’s intelligence agency claims North Korea is helping Russia not just with manpower, but with ballistic missiles as well. According to Skibitsky, before August of last year, North Korea had supplied Russia with at least 150 KN-23 and KN-24 ballistic missiles. Beyond that, a further 120 missiles had reportedly been pledged.
Several of these missiles have been used against various targets in Ukraine. Ukraine claims its capacity to intercept ballistic missiles is limited, and that stocks of missiles for the US-made Patriot defense system are also under strain.
Skibitsky further claims that the modern version of the missiles supplied by North Korea has a range of roughly 800 kilometers. However, he says, they often strike 15 to 19 kilometers off target. He claims North Korea is also using the missiles’ deployment in Ukraine as an opportunity to improve its own targeting accuracy and explosive-payload capability.
North Korean personnel operating missiles in Russia
Ukrainian intelligence claims roughly 90 North Korean personnel are assisting with missile-launch operations in Russia’s Voronezh region. It is also claimed that at least 10 large cargo aircraft, possibly carrying missiles, have landed from North Korea at the Baltimore air base in the Voronezh area.
According to Skibitsky, two missiles used in a July 30 strike on the Radushne area of Dnipro region are suspected to have been North Korean-made. Ukraine claims that strike killed at least four children from the same family.
Pyongyang seeking weapons from Russia in return
Skibitsky also said North Korea is seeking advanced air-defense technology in exchange for providing Russia with manpower and military equipment. He claims Pyongyang has requested Russia’s S-400 air-defense system. North Korea has already received a Pantsir-1 ground-to-air missile system.
Military cooperation between Russia and North Korea has deepened rapidly over the past two years. The two countries signed a NATO-style mutual defense treaty roughly two years ago. As a result, Pyongyang’s military support centered on Russia’s war in Ukraine is no longer limited to sending troops, and is now expanding to include the exchange of drones, missiles and military technology.
This situation is also raising concern among NATO member countries. In particular, after US President Donald Trump announced a scaling-back of military exercises with South Korea, fresh discussion has begun over the possibility of diplomatic contact with North Korea.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report