North Korean forces in Ukraine would put China in a tight spot: analysts

Reports that Pyongyang troops are assembling in Russia’s Far East and possibly already in Ukraine will be met with unease in Beijing

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A TV screen at a Seoul railway station broadcast an image on Monday of soldiers, believed to be from North Korea, receiving supplies in Russia. Photo: AP

Published: 10:00pm, 24 Oct 2024

The reported involvement of North Korean troops in Russia’s war against Ukraine would put China in a tight spot and could also lead to closer cooperation between the Nato countries and Northeast Asia, analysts said.

Kyiv and Seoul have accused Pyongyang of allocating more than 12,000 troops – including 3,000 already in Russia – to support the Russian war effort, a claim supported by the United States on Wednesday.

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said there was evidence to support the claim that North Korean forces were in Russia, but added that it remained to be seen what role, if any, they would play in the war.

“If they are cobelligerents, [if] their intention is to participate in this war on Russia’s behalf, that is a very, very serious issue,” Austin said.

Satellite imagery suggests that hundreds of North Korean troops left Chongjin port in the country’s northeast and are assembled and training in Ussuriysk and Khabarovsk in the Russian Far East.

According to defence officials in Seoul and Kyiv, North Korean military officers and engineers are already in Ukraine and helping the Russians use North Korea’s ballistic missiles. Some had been killed in battle, the officials said.

At the UN General Assembly on Monday, North Korea dismissed the accusations as “groundless rumours”, claiming its relations with Moscow were “legitimate and cooperative”. The Kremlin called the reports “contradictory”.