Russia 'transporting North Korean troops' to battlefield

Kim Young-bok, deputy chief of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army, accompanies North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (front) during his inspection of a special operations training base in the western part of North Korea on Oct. 2, 2024, in this photo released by the [North] Korean Central News Agency.

SEOUL, October 28 (AJP) - North Korean troops are expected to be deployed to the battlefield as early as this week.

Russia is "transporting North Korean soldiers to the front lines via trucks," the Kyiv Independent reported last Sunday, citing a source from the Main Directorate of Intelligence .

"Russian police officers on Oct. 27 stopped a Kamaz truck with civilian license plates on the Kursk-Voronezh highway," the Ukraine English-language online newspaper said. "The vehicle was reportedly loaded with North Korean military personnel."
 
Amid these developments, Kim Young-bok, a close military aide to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was reportedly sent to Russia to oversee North Korean troops there to support Russia's war in Ukraine, according to Japanese news agency Kyodo News last week.

It is unclear when the general arrived in Russia, but Ukrainian military intelligence claimed that his name was at the top of the list of North Korean officers dispatched there.

Meanwhile, foreign and defense officials from South Korea and the U.S. will hold talks in Washington this week to discuss the matter, with Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in attendance.