It has been reported that the North Korean regime intercepts over three-quarters of the paychecks North Korean troops in the Russo-Ukrainian War receive from Russian authorities. In other words, the regime takes advantage of most of the money that is supposed to go to the individual soldiers deployed to the Kursk war fronts, one of the most violent areas, to finance its nuclear development program.
“We have discovered that North Korean soldiers receive around 2,000 U.S. dollars a month in exchange for their military service in Russia, but only 400 to 500 dollars are paid to each soldier,” said a North Korean source on Wednesday. Another source reported that quite a large number of North Korean soldiers had not received any money at all. This suggests that those salaries paid by Russian authorities are, in effect, being used to financially support North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s nuclear ambitions and his regime. Last October, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) told the National Assembly’s Intelligence Committee that Russia reportedly paid North Korean troops a monthly amount of around 2,000 dollars per soldier.
In addition to around 11,000 special troops from the Storm Corps and the Reconnaissance General Bureau deployed to Russia last October and sent to the frontlines the following month, Pyongyang reportedly dispatched another 1,000 troops earlier this year. As of now, the number of casualties has reached more than 4,000, including hundreds of lives lost.
South Korean intelligence officials believe that the news spreads within North Korea, causing public unrest. Even though North Korean troops have been deployed to the battlefield for over four months, neither North Korea nor Russia has officially acknowledged the deployment. “A growing number of North Korean residents have come across the news on the deployment of troops in Russia despite the regime’s attempt to keep it from spreading,” the NIS said.
Kyu-Jin Shin newjin@donga.com