In a sign of deepening relations between North Korea and its ally Russia, Pyongyang said on Tuesday the Minister of Foreign Affairs visited Moscow.
North Korea did not specify the destination of the trip amid Western concerns about thousands of North Korean troops being sent to support Russia’s war in Ukraine, Korean Central News Agency said a delegation led by Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui left for Russia on Friday.
Why is North Korea Meeting in Moscow?
In a closed hearing in South Korea’s Parliament, the country’s spy agency suggested that North Korean officials Choe may have been involved in high-level discussions about sending additional troops to Russia and negotiating what North Korea would receive from Russia in return. member of parliament Lee Seong-kweun, who was present at the meeting.
Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo/AP
The announcement of Choe’s visit follows the Pentagon’s announcement that North Korea has sent about 10,000 troops to Russia, with the expectation that they will arrive on the battlefields of Ukraine in the “next few weeks.”
What is North Korea doing in Ukraine?
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters on Monday that some North Korean soldiers have approached Ukraine and are believed to be nearing Russia’s Kursk border region, where Russian forces have been struggling to repel Ukrainian attacks.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told lawmakers it is investigating the possibility that some North Korean military personnel in Russia, including generals or other high-ranking officials, may have moved to frontline areas.
The agency also noted that North Korea and Russia appear to be facing communication challenges, although Russian forces are training North Korean troops in Russian military terminology, according to Seong-kweun.
The National Intelligence Service reported that North Korea is likely to receive Russian assistance in space-based reconnaissance. According to lawmaker Park Sun-won, who attended the hearing, the agency stated that North Korea may have obtained advanced components from Russia as it prepares for another attempt to launch a military reconnaissance satellite, after a failed launch in May.
North Korea launched its first spy satellite into orbit last November, a move leader Kim Jong Un sees as crucial to tracking South Korean and US military activities. They see these assets as crucial to bolstering the threat posed by nuclear-capable missiles.
What Russia Says About Receiving North Korean Aid?
After initially rejecting reports of North Korean troop deployments, Pyongyang and Moscow have moved to a more ambiguous position, saying that their military cooperation is in accordance with international law, although neither has directly acknowledged the presence of North Korean troops in Russia.
North Korea has also been accused of supplying millions of artillery shells and other military equipment to Russia to support its war in Ukraine. The United States and its allies have condemned Russia’s procurement of North Korean personnel and supplies, citing concerns that Moscow could help Pyongyang evade sanctions and fund its weapons program.
This article includes a report from The Associated Press
