North Korean troops are officially on the ground in Europe, and the United States says it must stop now.
In a dramatic and unprecedented admission, North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has confirmed that he deployed combat troops to support Russian forces in the ongoing war in Ukraine. The deployment, made under a defence pact with Russian president Vladimir Putin, marks Pyongyang’s most direct military engagement outside the Korean Peninsula since the 1950s.
The move has sparked condemnation from the US, South Korea, and Western allies, who accuse North Korea of fuelling the conflict and violating international law.
“North Korea’s military deployment to Russia and any support provided by the Russian Federation in return must end,” a US State Department spokesperson said in a statement on Monday. “Their involvement has perpetuated the Russia-Ukraine war. They bear responsibility.”
Troops Deployed Under 2024 Pact with Putin
Kim Jong Un’s confirmation came via North Korean state media, which hailed the soldiers who fought alongside Russian troops in the Kursk region as “heroes” and “representatives of the honour of the motherland”.
The deployment, according to Kim, was in line with the June 2024 mutual defence treaty between Pyongyang and Moscow, which commits both nations to provide immediate military aid in the event of aggression against either side.
Kim repeated Kremlin rhetoric, stating that North Korean soldiers were helping to “annihilate and wipe out the Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers” and “liberate” Kursk in coordination with Russian forces.
He did not disclose the number of troops sent or casualties sustained, but promised state honours and memorials in Pyongyang for the fallen. He also called for the government to prioritise support for the families of deployed soldiers.
Thousands Sent, Thousands Lost
While North Korea and Russia have kept quiet on numbers, Western intelligence assessments suggest the initial deployment in autumn 2024 involved between 10,000 and 12,000 North Korean troops.
South Korea has reported that around 4,000 of them were killed or wounded, with another 3,000 troops sent earlier this year as reinforcements.
This marks North Korea’s first direct participation in a major armed conflict since the end of the Korean War in 1953.
Global Condemnation and Legal Alarm
South Korea swiftly condemned Kim’s public admission, calling it an “admission of a criminal act”.
“This is an inhumane and immoral decision,” said a spokesperson from Seoul’s foreign ministry. “It violates the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions. North Korea is mocking the international community while claiming their actions comply with international law.”
South Korea’s unification ministry urged North Korea to immediately withdraw its troops, warning that its involvement in Russia’s war amounts to a “grave provocation” to international security.
Human rights concerns have also been raised over the use of poorly prepared North Korean troops in a foreign theatre of war. Despite being known for strict discipline, they are reportedly suffering heavy losses due to a lack of modern combat experience and unfamiliarity with Ukrainian terrain, making them vulnerable to drone and artillery strikes.
A Dangerous Precedent
The confirmed presence of North Korean troops on European soil, and their active involvement in a war that has already destabilised the region, raises serious questions about the future of global security alliances.
Military analysts warn that battlefield exposure could enhance the operational readiness of North Korea’s armed forces, a worrying development given Pyongyang’s expanding nuclear ambitions.
Meanwhile, the West faces the growing reality of an increasingly open military partnership between two of the world’s most sanctioned regimes, forged not through diplomacy, but through the blood and sacrifice of ordinary soldiers.
