Russia and North Korea officially acknowledged for the first time that North Korean troops have been deployed in the Ukraine war.
According to the Kremlin on the 26th, Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, said in a recent meeting with President Vladimir Putin, "North Korean soldiers and officers fought shoulder to shoulder with the Russian army in the process of repelling the attack from Ukraine. They have shown high professionalism, resilience, courage, and heroic actions."
Maria Zakharova, Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, issued a statement immediately after the Kremlin's announcement, referring to the North Korean troops as "friends," and stated, "These individuals fought shoulder to shoulder with our troops in the trenches in Kursk, shedding blood, according to the Russia-North Korea treaty. The solidarity shown by the North Korean army demonstrates that the relationship between the two countries is at a highly essential alliance level."
According to foreign media, including The Independent, it is reported that North Korean troops were deployed to the Russian front in Kursk around October of last year, but both countries did not officially acknowledge this fact.
Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, stated that the deployment of North Korean troops was in accordance with the "comprehensive strategic partnership treaty" signed between President Putin and Chairman Kim Jong-un of North Korea during Putin's visit to Pyongyang last June.
The Kremlin also claimed to have completely reclaimed the Kursk front, where Ukrainian forces had advanced since last August. However, the Ukrainian side denies this. Andriy Kovalensko, head of the Ukrainian military's misinformation response center, said, "The Kursk operation is ongoing."
North Korea also officially confirmed the deployment of its troops to Russia. The Korean Central News Agency reported on the same day that the Central Military Commission of the Labor Party announced this through a written statement the previous day.
The Central Military Commission stated in its position paper, "The liberation operation in the Kursk region to repel the adventurous military invasion by the Ukrainian authorities against the Russian Federation has been successfully concluded," and that the North Korean military units participated according to orders from the head of state.
It continued, "Comrade Kim Jong-un decided our military's participation based on the analysis and judgment that the current situation corresponds to the activation of Article 4 of the treaty on the comprehensive strategic partnership between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Russian Federation, and notified the Russian side."
Kim also indicated, "A combat monument will soon be erected in our capital. Flowers symbolizing the eternal wishes of the homeland and the people will be placed before the graves of the fallen soldiers," implying that there have been numerous casualties among North Korean troops due to their deployment to Ukraine.
The treaty mentioned by Russia and North Korea promises mutual military support in case of similar situations, and the emphasis on this treaty appears to be an intention to rebut criticisms from the international community regarding the deployment of North Korean troops as a violation of United Nations sanctions against North Korea, according to foreign media.