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North Korea sends at least 3,000 more troops to Russia in early 2025, Seoul says

Pyongyang also supplied Russia with “a considerable amount” of ballistic missiles and around 220 self-propelled howitzers and 240 mm rocket launchers.

byYuri Zoria

27/03/2025

3 minute read

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North Korean POW Ri who had been fighting against Ukraine. Source: Volodymyr Zelenskyy

North Korea sends at least 3,000 more troops to Russia in early 2025, Seoul says

North Korea appears to have deployed at least 3,000 additional soldiers to Russia in January and February to support Moscow’s war against Ukraine, according to South Korea’s military statement released on 27 March.

Moscow is transferring military technologies to Pyongyang in exchange for the deployment of South Korean troops to fight against Ukraine. Previously, Ukraine reported that Pyongyang had initially sent 12,000 soldiers to Russia, while Seoul’s estimate was more conservative, at 11,000. These troops played an active role in Russia’s ultimately successful effort to push Ukrainian forces out of most of their bridgehead in Russia’s Kursk Oblast.

Yonhap reports that the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said:

“Of the some 11,000 North Korean soldiers dispatched to Russia, 4,000 casualties have occurred, and it appears that some 3,000 or more have been additionally dispatched (this year).“

Alongside the troop deployment, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) reported that North Korea is still providing Russia with a range of military supplies. These include “a considerable amount of short-range ballistic missiles and around 220 pieces of 170 millimeter self-propelled howitzers and 240 mm rocket launchers.”

Since signing a landmark defense agreement last year, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin have been strengthening their security relationship, committing to provide immediate military support in the event of an attack on either country.

This week, Kim Jong Un supervised the testing of new AI-powered attack drones, with North Korea’s state media reporting that he instructed their further development “in keeping with the trend of modern warfare” On 27 March, South Korea’s military revealed that Pyongyang also introduced a new reconnaissance drone, which could partly have been sourced from Russia. A spokesperson for the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) noted that “internal equipment and such parts could be related to Russia,” according to CNN.

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