Japanese Media: "Putin Requests Kim Jong-un for Troop Deployment"

During Space Base Talks, Urged Kim Jong-un for Troop Support
National Intelligence Service & US "Closely Monitoring North Korea-Russia Cooperation Trends"

Russian President Vladimir Putin is reported to have requested troop deployment from North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un.

On the 6th, Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun cited sources familiar with Russia-North Korea relations, reporting, "There is information that President Putin requested troop deployment during a summit with Chairman Kim."

Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) and North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un are toasting at a state banquet held in Pyongyang on the 19th during Putin's state visit to North Korea.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the sources, during a meeting held last September at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Amur region of Russia's Far East, President Putin urged Chairman Kim for a rapid, long-term, and stable supply of artillery shells and other weapons, as well as troop support.

At that time, Chairman Kim agreed to supply weapons but reportedly did not give a clear stance on troop deployment, stating that "further discussion is needed."

The newspaper emphasized the possibility that President Putin requested weapons and military support again when he visited North Korea last month for the first time in 24 years. However, in an interview with Russian media in Vietnam after his visit to North Korea, President Putin denied the possibility of North Korean troop deployment, saying, "I have never requested troop deployment from anyone, nor is there any need to do so."

The National Intelligence Service stated that it is "closely monitoring the trend of North Korea-Russia cooperation" regarding the possibility of North Korean troop deployment. Patrick Ryder, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense, also pointed out at a press conference on the 25th of last month that they are "closely watching" the possibility of North Korean troop deployment, calling it "a choice to send cannon fodder for the illegal war against Ukraine."

The newspaper added, "Within the South Korean government, there is speculation that North Korean technicians will be deployed to the restoration work in the eastern region of Ukraine, which Russia unilaterally annexed."

Meanwhile, North Korea has expressed support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It has supplied Russia with about 5 million artillery shells and state-of-the-art ballistic missiles. Russia is estimated to have provided North Korea with oil and food in return. The newspaper reported that the South Korean government believes that if North Korea decides to deploy troops, it will receive advanced military technology support from Russia as compensation.