North Korea’s growing role

North Korea has leaned closer to Moscow in recent years, supplying fighters, ammunition, and laborers in exchange for aid.

North Korea has played an active role in the Russia-Ukraine war since 2022.

According to South Korean intelligence, about 15,000 North Korean troops have been dispatched to Russia since last year, with an estimated 2,000 killed in action so far.

In addition, Pyongyang has pledged to send thousands of military construction workers and deminers to the Kursk region, to help with the ”restoration”.

It is clear that Washington is far from pleased with North Korea’s involvement in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. This past summer, a U.S. State Department spokesperson told Yonhap News Agency that Moscow’s reliance on North Korean workers and soldiers was “deeply concerning.”