Ukraine says N. Korea’s first troops arrive in Kursk

Ukrainian intelligence authorities argued that the first North Korean troops would arrive on Wednesday (local time) in the Russian region of Kursk, which is occupied by Ukraine. If this is the case, Ukrainian and North Korean forces may have an armed conflict before long.

Ukrainian Chief of the Defense Intelligence Kyrylo Budanov said on Tuesday that North Korea’s first troops would arrive in Kursk in southern Russia on Wednesday at the earliest, adding that they would help Russia protect the region against Ukraine, reported U.S. defense-specific news website The War Zone. Earlier, Ukrainian intelligence authorities projected that the first array of 2,600 North Korean forces would end up in Kursk no earlier than Nov. 1.

The Kursk region is located in southeastern Russia, bordering the northeastern Ukrainian state of Sumy. Since it carried out a sudden ground war in August, Ukraine has partially occupied the region, one of the most ferocious battlefields along with eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed in an address on Tuesday that North Korea has trained two brigades of 6,000 troops each (in Russia), pointing out that the regime is part of the ongoing war on Ukrainian territory. The number of North Korean troops that he referred to is in line with the National Intelligence Service’s analysis that the regime decided to send four brigades or around 12,000 soldiers including special forces.


Eun-A Cho achim@donga.com · Jin-Woo Shin niceshin@donga.com