Russia seeks additional 30,000 North Korean soldiers to fight in Ukraine, Zelensky claims

Lead

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that Russia is seeking an additional 30,000 troops from North Korea to support its war effort in Ukraine, with preparations to receive them underway in Russia’s Voronezh region near the Ukrainian border since June. In a social media post and his nightly address, Zelensky also said North Korea is preparing to transfer additional launchers for ballistic missiles to Russia. He described the cooperation as a threat not only to Ukraine but to others in Asia within range of North Korean missiles, adding that Russia is helping North Korea learn how to wage war, improve its weapons, and gain real combat experience.

The claims, carried by the Jerusalem Post and South China Morning Post, build on earlier reports of North Korean military involvement. Ukrainian intelligence estimates that between 12,000 and 14,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to Russia’s Kursk region in 2024 to assist Russian forces. Fox News, citing a Ukrainian intelligence official, reported separately that Russia has begun deploying a North Korean missile unit equipped with up to 120 ballistic missiles and six launchers, with around 90 North Korean personnel expected to be stationed in the Voronezh region to support it.

Coverage Comparison

Coverage across Fox News, the Jerusalem Post, and the South China Morning Post centers on Zelensky’s assertions about expanded North Korean support while differing in emphasis and supporting detail. The Jerusalem Post and South China Morning Post both led with Zelensky’s statement on the request for 30,000 additional troops and the Voronezh preparations, quoting him directly on the missile launchers and the broader risks of combat experience gained by North Korean forces. One South China Morning Post report framed the development as a rumoured deepening of defence ties and included comment from a North Korea-focused analyst describing potential mutual benefits. Fox News focused more heavily on the reported deployment of a North Korean missile unit, attributing specifics on missile numbers, launchers, and personnel to Andrii Cherniak of Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence, and noted prior deliveries of ballistic missiles along with North Korea’s supply of millions of artillery shells to Russia.

The outlets converge on the existence of prior North Korean troop deployments to Kursk and on Zelensky’s warning about technology and experience transfers. They diverge in the granularity of equipment figures and casualty estimates. The Jerusalem Post cited Ukrainian intelligence for the 12,000-to-14,000 troop range sent in 2024 and referenced reports of as many as 6,000 North Korean deaths. Fox News concentrated on the missile unit’s composition and the stationing of roughly 90 personnel. South China Morning Post reporting similarly referenced an estimated 14,000 soldiers plus engineers first sent to Kursk in late 2024, with Pyongyang later confirming the deployment.

Key Claims

• Russia is seeking an additional 30,000 North Korean troops for the war in Ukraine, with preparations underway in the Voronezh region since June, according to statements by President Zelensky reported by the Jerusalem Post and South China Morning Post.
• North Korea is preparing to transfer additional launchers for ballistic missiles to Russia, as stated by Zelensky and carried by the Jerusalem Post and South China Morning Post.
• Russia has begun deploying a North Korean missile unit equipped with up to 120 ballistic missiles and six launchers, with around 90 North Korean personnel expected in the Voronezh region, according to a Ukrainian intelligence official cited by Fox News.
• North Korea has supplied millions of artillery shells to Russia, as reported by Fox News.
• Russia is helping North Korea learn how to wage war, improve its weapons, and gain real combat experience, according to Zelensky’s remarks reported across the Jerusalem Post and South China Morning Post.
• Between 12,000 and 14,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to Russia’s Kursk region in 2024, according to Ukrainian intelligence estimates reported by the Jerusalem Post and South China Morning Post.
• As many as 6,000 North Korean troops have died since being sent, according to figures referenced in the Jerusalem Post.

Perspectives

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has portrayed the expanding military partnership as a direct threat to Ukraine and to countries in Asia within range of North Korean missiles, arguing that combat experience and weapons improvements transferred to Pyongyang heighten regional risks.

Oh Gyeong-seob, a North Korea-focused political scientist and senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, described the reported arrangement as a plausible win-win: North Korea would supply cost-effective frontline troops while receiving money and military technology in return, according to comments carried by the South China Morning Post.