Social media users have been circulating several videos and photos that they say show North Korean soldiers fighting for Russia in the Russian region of Kursk. Western and South Korean intelligence services started to report in October that North Korea was planning to send between 10,000 and 12,000 troops to Russia to support its war against Ukraine. While it is likely that the North Korean soldiers are on the ground in Russia, the experts who spoke to our team said that most of the photos and videos circulating online are false or impossible to verify.
Thousands of North Korean soldiers are thought to have arrived in Russia – a deployment that Western countries see as a significant development in the war in Ukraine. It is thought that most of these soldiers will be fighting in the Russian oblast, or province, of Kursk, which has been partially occupied by Ukrainian soldiers since the summer of 2024. A number of videos said to show the North Korean soldiers already fighting on the frontlines in Kursk have been circulating on X and Telegram since mid-October.
Hereâs what we know.
Videos said to show North Korean soldiers in far eastern Russia
The soldiers in the video speak Korean with âan accent that sounds like the North Korean accentâ, says ThĂ©o ClĂ©ment, a researcher and consultant specialised in North Korea, who spoke to our team.
So are these videos proof that North Korean reinforcements have arrived in Russia? “It is very possible that the footage from Sergeevka is authentic, but it isnât definitive,â ClĂ©ment told our team.
Some of these images show Russian soldiers of Asian origin
North Korean âmercenariesâ photographed with Russian soldiers
Read more on The Observers – France 24
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