Babel sources: Russia is preparing the North Korean military for war in Ukraine at four of its training grounds

The Russian army is preparing about 11 000 North Korean soldiers to take part in military operations in Ukraine at four training grounds of the Russian Federation.

Babel was informed about this by sources in Ukrainian intelligence (known as GUR).

Itʼs about landfills in such cities as Khabarovsk, Usuriysk, Blagoveshchensk, and Vladivostok.

Earlier, the head of GUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov said that there are about 11 000 North Korean soldiers in the east of Russia, who will be ready to fight in Ukraine as early as November 1.

According to him, the first division of 2 600 soldiers will go to Kursk, where Ukraine established a bridgehead for which fierce battles were fought. It is still unclear where the rest of the North Korean troops will be sent, Budanov added.

Union of Russia and North Korea

On October 4, Kyiv Post, citing Ukrainian intelligence, reported that six North Korean officers were killed a day earlier in an attack by the Armed Forces near occupied Donetsk. An anonymous Ukrainian official told The Guardian that North Korean military engineers are helping Russian troops strike Ukraine with North Korean KN-23 ballistic missiles.

Already on October 8, South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun said that the agreements between Russia and North Korea resemble a military alliance, therefore there is a high probability that the military from the DPRK is fighting on the side of the Russian Federation in Ukraine — and their number may increase. In a few days, President Zelensky confirmed that North Korea supplies Russia not only with weapons, but also with personnel for the military forces.

"Babel" intelligence sources said on October 1 that a "special Buryat battalion" staffed by citizens of the DPRK is being formed at the base of the 11th separate airborne assault brigade of the Russian Federation.

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