North Korea will send military builders and demining troops to help rebuild Russia’s western Kursk region after a Ukrainian incursion, Russian news agencies reported Tuesday, June 17.
Russia’s Security Council chief Sergei Shoigu made the announcement during a visit to North Korea, where he held talks with leader Kim Jong Un for the second time in less than two weeks.
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According to Shoigu, Pyongyang will send a division of builders, two military brigades totaling 5,000 troops, and about 1,000 deminers to support reconstruction in Kursk.
“This is a kind of fraternal assistance from the Korean people and leader Kim Jong Un to our country,” Shoigu said, as quoted by TASS news agency. He added that the two sides also agreed to continue “constructive cooperation.”
Since 2022, Moscow and Pyongyang have deepened economic and military cooperation, marked by a mutual defense treaty signed last November.
Last year, North Korea sent 12,000 soldiers to support Russia’s war in Ukraine, followed by an additional 3,000 this year. The troops supported Moscow’s counteroffensive in Kursk, a western Russian region where Kyiv troops launched a surprise incursion last August and suffered heavy casualties, according to reports.
Pyongyang has also emerged as a key military supplier to Russia in its war against Ukraine. Between August 2023 and March 2025, at least 64 shipments were identified.
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During that time, North Korea sent over 15,800 containers to Russia, containing an estimated 4.2 to 5.8 million rounds of ammunition. The shipments also included a significant number of short-range ballistic missiles, 170mm self-propelled howitzers, and roughly 220 units of 240mm multiple rocket launch systems.
North Korea has defended its military support, saying the cooperation is meant to “ensure peace and stability” in both Europe and Asia.
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