Newspim: South Korea discusses sending its military to Ukraine
South Korea may send military personnel to Ukraine to participate in the conflict against Russia. This is how Seoul wants to respond to Pyongyang, which is allegedly already sending soldiers to help the Russian Armed Forces. Moscow denies the North Koreans' participation in the SDF, and North Korea's representative at the UN said that these are "baseless stereotypical rumors."
Seoul is considering sending its military experts and intelligence officers to Ukraine, the South Korean news agency Newspim reports, citing sources. This will be done in response to the presence of soldiers from the DPRK in the region, who will allegedly fight on the side of Russia. Moscow and Pyongyang deny information about North Korean soldiers in the ranks of the Russian Armed Forces.
The Newspim report, citing an intelligence official, says that the South Korean government and military are "considering a plan to send personnel, including intelligence officers and experts on enemy tactics." "South Korean personnel" in Ukraine can interrogate North Korean prisoners, they will also provide Kiev with information about the principles of action of North Korean units, psychology and morale of soldiers, and will also be able to collect new information about the actions of the DPRK army, which may be useful to South Korea, the agency explains.
"In order to respond to a situation where North Korea is sending large-scale combat troops to Russia, we are considering sending an appropriate number of personnel consisting of experts in the field of North Korean intelligence and enemy tactics," a South Korean intelligence official said.
According to him,
In addition, they will be responsible for further measures in case the prisoners want to seek asylum in South Korea.
A Newspim source in Seoul associated with the DPRK said that "Zelensky shows great concern about North Korea's decision to send troops." "It is very likely that he has asked the South Korean government to send a military support group or personnel specializing in the fight against the DPRK," he added.
It has not yet been decided whether to officially announce the dispatch of specialists: the decision depends on the position of the political leadership of Ukraine and South Korea, the source explained.
Is North Korea in Ukraine?
On October 14, President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky said that the DPRK had "actually joined" the conflict. "I Made A Bet. A few questions. Among the main things was the intelligence report on the intentions of the Russians for the autumn - winter. Everything is quite detailed. In fact, the inclusion of North Korea in the war," Zelensky said in an evening video message.
At the same time, Russian President Vladimir Putin submitted to the State Duma a bill on ratification of the comprehensive strategic partnership agreement between Russia and North Korea, which was signed on June 19 during a visit to the DPRK.
A day earlier, South Korean President Yun Seok-yel held an emergency meeting on the issue of North Korean soldiers in Russia. According to him, 1.5 thousand special forces of the DPRK are already in the Far East, and in total Pyongyang plans to send 12 thousand soldiers of elite units to its defense.
The Pentagon could not confirm this information and continues to study the issue.
The Kremlin denies the North Koreans' participation in the special operation. "It looks like another information duck," said Dmitry Peskov, the president's press secretary.
"Groundless rumors"
On Monday, October 21, North Korea for the first time commented on the information about sending its troops to the Russian air defense system. North Korea has dismissed as "groundless rumors" South Korea's accusations that it is sending soldiers to participate in the conflict in Ukraine on the side of Russia. Pyongyang said its relations with Moscow are "legitimate and based on cooperation."
"As for the so-called military cooperation with Russia, my delegation sees no need to comment on such baseless stereotypical rumors aimed at blackening the image of the DPRK and undermining legitimate, friendly and partnership relations between two sovereign states," North Korea's representative to the United Nations said during a meeting of the first committee of the UN General Assembly on disarmament and international security (quoted by the South Korean Yonhap news agency).
Dmitry Shumov
