S. Korea’s NIS reports about 3,000 N. Korean troops moving to Russia

[Anchor]

South Korea's National Intelligence Service has reported that the number of North Korean troops moved to Russia has been identified as exceeding 3,000.

It is predicted that the number of deployed personnel will reach around 10,000 by December.

They also revealed that there are indications of efforts to control the families of deployed soldiers by isolating them in groups.

Yang Min-cheol reports.

[Report]

The National Intelligence Service previously stated that about 1,500 members of the North Korean special forces had moved to Vladivostok, Russia.

They now report that the number of North Korean troops moved to Russia has increased to over 3,000, and they expect it to reach a total of 10,000 by December.

[Park Sun-won/Member of the National Assembly Intelligence Committee/ Democratic Party: "The special operations unit known as the 'Storm Corps' has been dispatched as the main force, and it appears they are currently adapting locally, dispersed across various training facilities in Russia."]

The National Intelligence Service also identified trends indicating that the Russian military is selecting Korean language interpreters on a large scale, and that special training is being conducted for the North Korean troops on the use of military equipment and drone operation.

Furthermore, Russian military instructors have evaluated the deployed North Korean troops as having excellent physical fitness and morale, but they believe that a lack of understanding of modern warfare, such as drone attacks, could lead to many casualties when they are actually deployed to the front lines.

Additionally, it was reported that there is unrest within North Korea regarding the deployment.

Although the North Korean authorities have not disclosed any related information, rumors are spreading internally that families of deployed soldiers are weeping heavily, and there are indications that these families are being isolated and managed.

[Lee Seong-kweun/Member of the National Assembly Intelligence Committee/People Power Party: "(The North Korean authorities) are reportedly isolating and managing the families of deployed soldiers more effectively through thorough control measures and collective relocation."]

However, the National Intelligence Service did not confirm whether the North Korean troops have been deployed to the front lines of the Ukraine war, nor did they report separately on media reports from Ukraine stating that some of the deployed North Korean troops have deserted.

This is KBS News, Yang Min-cheol.