South Korean intelligence: North Korea sent 3,000 troops to Russia for war

North Korea has sent around 3,000 troops to Russia to support its forces in the war against Ukraine, according to a report by Reuters citing South Korean intelligence.

Thousands more are expected to follow, with Seoul stating that Pyongyang has promised to send Russia over 10,000 soldiers in total, with the deployment scheduled to be completed by December, journalists report.

The latest figures emerged after South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) confirmed that around 1,500 North Korean special forces arrived in Russia by ship: "Signs of troops being trained inside North Korea were detected in September and October."

South Korean official Lee Seong-kweun said North Korean authorities have made efforts to prevent news of the troop deployment from spreading.

"There are also signs of North Korean authorities relocating and isolating those families [of the troops] in a certain place in order to effectively control them and thoroughly crack down on the rumours," he stated.

He added that Russia has hired "a large number" of translators to assist North Korean troops in learning to operate military equipment, including drones.

"Russian instructors are assessing that the North Korean military has excellent physical attributes and morale but lacks understanding of modern warfare such as drone attacks. Therefore there could be many casualties if they are deployed to the frontlines," Lee Seong-kweun said.