South Korea has said that North Korea has sent at least 3,000 more soldiers to help Russia in its war with Ukraine. According to the South Korean army, those soldiers were sent at the beginning of this year.

While world leaders are insisting on ending the conflict that has been going on for three years, North Korea is continuously supporting Russia in the war against Ukraine. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is preparing for a visit to Russia, and the information about military cooperation has been made public. 

According to South Korea, North Korea had previously sent at least 11,000 soldiers to help Russia. According to the North Korean army, about 4,000 soldiers were killed among them. 

The North Korean army was stationed in the Russian region of Kursk since last November to stop the Ukrainian attack. But Ukraine says that they have withdrawn from the front line since January after reports of a large number of deaths were published. 

During the war, the Ukrainian intelligence service said that some soldiers were arrested and "all necessary medical assistance was provided in accordance with the Geneva Convention." According to intelligence services, those prisoners of war cannot speak Ukrainian, English or Russian. 

But last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin did not deny the use of North Korean troops in the war against Ukraine. In response to the question, he said that it was a "sovereign decision" of Russia.

The North has been supplying the Russian military with 240-mm rocket launchers and 170-mm self-propelled artillery. South Korea claims that North Korea is aiming to modernize its conventional war capabilities based on combat experience in the Russia-Ukraine war, and that this can increase the military threat against them.

The American administration is trying to convince Russia to end the war. European leaders and allies are set to gather in Paris on Thursday to discuss aid for Ukraine and long-term stability in the region. But North Korea seems to be increasing towards Russia. 

This week, after talks in Saudi Arabia, the US said that both Russia and Ukraine agreed to stop using force in the Black Sea and not to attack energy infrastructure as previously announced. But for that, Russia has put forward a new demand that the ban on its banks and financial institutions should be lifted. 

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin have been deepening security ties since signing a historic defense pact last year. On that occasion, both leaders promised to use all available means to provide immediate military assistance in case of an attack on each other. 

Putin's top security adviser, Sergei Soigu, met with Kim in Pyongyang last week. During the meeting, Soigu expressed "greetings from Putin" to Kim, according to the Russian state-run news agency TASS. "He pays a lot of attention to the implementation of agreements with you," Soigu told Kim. 

The United States claims that Russia is providing military equipment and training in exchange for North Korea's support in the Ukraine war and is preparing to share advanced space and satellite technology. Since the start of the war, North Korea has sent thousands of shipping containers of weapons or weapons-related materials to Russia. 

Last February, Moscow's ambassador to Pyongyang, Alexander Matsegora, said that North Korea was treating hundreds of Russian soldiers injured in Ukraine. According to him, Russia supplies coal, food and medicine to North Korea. He said that the children of Russian soldiers who were killed in Ukraine went to North Korea for a holiday and they are running a student exchange program between the two countries. 

South Korean officials have also agreed with the American statement that the deep partnership between Russia and North Korea will facilitate the transfer of technology to the Kim regime. 

North Korean leader Kim this week oversaw the testing of a new AI-powered drone. According to the North Korean state-run news agency KCNA, Kim has directed the further development of such drones "taking into account the trend of modern warfare".