According to the North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), leader Kim Jong-un personally ordered the deployment of troops to repel the occupying forces and liberate Kursk province.
Information about the participation of North Korean soldiers was published by the KCNA in a news bulletin on the morning of April 28, marking the first time Pyongyang has recognized the presence of its army on the Russian battlefield.
The report quoted the North Korean Central Military Commission as saying that the operation to liberate Kursk province to repel Ukrainian forces against the Russian Federation ended in victory.
According to KCNA, the deployment of the force is based on the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty signed by Moscow and Pyongyang in December last year.
The treaty stipulates that in the event of an attack on one side, the other side will provide "immediate support by all available means," in accordance with Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.
The North Korean Central Military Commission stressed that Pyongyang's military activities in Russia are "completely in accordance with international law" and affirmed that this is a model of the implementation of the common defense obligation under the agreement with Moscow.
According to North Korean officials, the fighting in Kursk province has activated Article 4 of the partnership treaty, which requires bilateral military support. On that basis, leader Kim Jong-un "idingere the decision" to transfer soldiers to Russian territory and officially informed the Kremlin.
Last week, in a report to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russian military Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov praised the "huge contribution" of North Korean soldiers to the efforts to liberate Kursk province from Ukrainian forces.
Ukraine launched an offensive into Kursk last August, mobilizing many elite units equipped with weapons provided by the West. Although it initially took some settlements, the advance of the Ukrainian army was later stopped by fierce counterattacks by the Russian army and North Korean support forces.
The coordination between the Russian military and North Korean units is said to have played an important role in controlling the situation, repelling the enemy's advance and regaining control of many key areas.
Over the past months, Kiev and its Western allies have repeatedly accused North Korea of participating in the conflict, but neither Pyongyang nor Moscow have confirmed nor denied it. Russian President Vladimir Putin had previously stated that the implementation of the terms of the bilateral agreement "is entirely up to the two countries to decide themselves".
North Korea's official confirmation of its participation in the war not only affirms the unprecedented level of strategic cohesion between Moscow and Pyongyang, but also marks the first time in modern history that North Korean soldiers have been deployed abroad to participate in a military conflict.
