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U.S. calls Russia's use of North Korean workers, soldiers for operations against Ukraine 'deeply concerning'

Published: 18 Jun. 2025, 10:16 Updated: 18 Jun. 2025, 17:35

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth testifies during a Senate Committee on Appropriations subcommittee hearing in Washington on June 11. [AP/YONHAP]

The United States on Tuesday described Russia's continued use of North Korean workers and troops for operations against Ukraine as "deeply concerning," after Russian media reported Pyongyang will send an additional 6,000 military workers and sappers to Russia's front-line Kursk region.

A State Department spokesperson made the remarks, underscoring that the income generation by North Korean workers in Russia and other foreign countries constitutes a violation of a UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution.

TASS, a Russian news agency, has reported that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has decided to send 5,000 military construction workers and 1,000 sappers to Russia, after Russia's Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu visited Pyongyang this week.

"Russia's continued use of North Korean workers and soldiers to support its military operations against Ukraine is deeply concerning," the spokesperson said in response to a question from Yonhap News Agency.

"The North Korean regime correspondingly is now relying on Russia to provide it with desperately needed funds in exchange for labor and soldier for hire schemes," the official added.

The spokesperson also stressed that North Korean workers financially support Pyongyang's "unlawful" weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs, and that the overseas workers, including in Russia, are generating income in breach of a UNSC resolution.

Yonhap