North Korea has decided to send a "large-scale" troop deployment to support Moscow's war in Ukraine, with 1,500 special forces already in Russia's Far East and undergoing training, Seoul's spy agency said Friday.
The National Intelligence Service said the North had decided to send thousands of soldiers to help Russia, releasing detailed satellite images it said showed the first deployment.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol convened an emergency security meeting Friday, with Seoul slamming Pyongyang's move as "a significant security threat not only to our country but also to the international community," the president's office said.
The NIS said it had "detected that from the 8th to the 13th (of October), North Korea transported its special forces to Russia via a Russian Navy transport ship, confirming the start of North Korea's military participation" in Russia's war in Ukraine.
According to the NIS, multiple Russian landing ships and frigates have already completed transporting the first contingent of troops, who are currently stationed in military bases across Russia's Far East.
The special forces soldiers "are expected to be deployed to the front lines (of the Ukraine conflict) as soon as they complete acclimatisation training," it said. The soldiers have been issued Russian military uniforms and Russian-made weapons, the NIS said.
The National Intelligence Service said the North had decided to send thousands of soldiers to help Russia, releasing detailed satellite images it said showed the first deployment.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol convened an emergency security meeting Friday, with Seoul slamming Pyongyang's move as "a significant security threat not only to our country but also to the international community," the president's office said.
The NIS said it had "detected that from the 8th to the 13th (of October), North Korea transported its special forces to Russia via a Russian Navy transport ship, confirming the start of North Korea's military participation" in Russia's war in Ukraine.
According to the NIS, multiple Russian landing ships and frigates have already completed transporting the first contingent of troops, who are currently stationed in military bases across Russia's Far East.
The special forces soldiers "are expected to be deployed to the front lines (of the Ukraine conflict) as soon as they complete acclimatisation training," it said. The soldiers have been issued Russian military uniforms and Russian-made weapons, the NIS said.
