South Korea's foreign ministry said on Monday, 27 July that it is closely watching military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that Moscow is preparing to receive an additional 30,000 North Korean troops for deployment in its war against Ukraine. Seoul stopped short of confirming the claim, citing the sensitivity of intelligence matters.

Zelenskyy's Claim and Seoul's Response

In a post on X, Zelenskyy alleged that preparations to receive the additional troops have been under way since June in Russia's Voronezh region. He also claimed that Pyongyang was preparing to transfer additional ballistic missile launchers to Russia, though he did not provide specific intelligence or supporting details for either assertion.

South Korea's foreign ministry responded with a carefully worded statement: 'The government is closely monitoring developments related to military cooperation between North Korea and Russia,' while declining to elaborate on intelligence matters. It reiterated its standing position that 'military cooperation between North Korea and Russia in violation of UN Security Council resolutions must be stopped immediately.'

Notably, government sources in Seoul said there have been no confirmed signs so far of an additional troop deployment.

How Many North Korean Troops Are Already in Russia

North Korea is believed to have already dispatched approximately 20,000 troops and military engineers to support Russia's war effort, according to reports. Of these, around 14,000 are estimated to be currently serving on active front lines. Ukraine and its Western allies have separately estimated that roughly 14,000 combat troops were deployed to Russia's Kursk region, with additional engineering and military construction units reportedly raising the overall total.

Diplomatic Signals from Pyongyang and Moscow

The monitoring comes amid fresh diplomatic activity between the two sides. Last week, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui visited Moscow, where she held meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The high-level visit has fuelled speculation about the deepening of military ties beyond what has already been publicly acknowledged.

This is not the first such signal. North Korea began dispatching troops to Russia in October 2024, following a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty signed by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang four months prior — a pact that has since served as the legal framework for military cooperation between the two states.

What This Means for the Region

The potential addition of 30,000 troops — if confirmed — would nearly double the estimated North Korean military presence in Russia, representing a significant escalation in what analysts have described as an increasingly formalised military alliance. For South Korea, the deepening Russia-North Korea axis raises concerns not only about the battlefield in Ukraine but also about technology transfers and combat experience that Pyongyang's forces may bring back, potentially reshaping the security calculus on the Korean Peninsula.

As Seoul continues to track developments, all eyes will be on whether independent intelligence agencies corroborate Zelenskyy's claims — and whether North Korea's Foreign Minister's Moscow visit produces any public announcements on further military commitments.