Russia-Ukraine war: North Korea deploys 400

A senior Ukrainian intelligence official warned that the latest wave of North Korean troops in Russia includes a dedicated drone unit capable of striking targets directly inside Ukraine, according to a new CNN report. CNN, citing Major General Vadym Skibitskiy, Deputy Head of Ukrainian Defence Intelligence, reported that there are already 8,500 North Korean soldiers stationed in Russia. This growing deployment signals a major expansion of the military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, building on the mutual defence pact the two nations signed two years ago. The current North Korean forces are primarily concentrated in Russia’s Kursk region. Key operational details outlined in the report include: Despite the buildup, Skibitskiy noted that North Korean troops are expected to reinforce rear positions rather than fight directly on Ukrainian soil, thereby freeing up Russian forces for frontline assaults. Meanwhile, Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, strongly denied the claims of a massive upcoming troop surge, labelling it a “groundless self-fabricated scenario.” This deepening alliance comes at a critical moment for Kyiv, which is currently facing a severe shortage of air defence systems. The partnership is also raising red flags across the NATO alliance. These concerns have been further amplified following President Donald Trump’s recent announcement to scale down joint US-South Korea military exercises in an effort to avoid antagonising the North Korean leader. Beyond providing manpower, Pyongyang is actively bolstering Russia’s munitions stockpile and missile capabilities. CNN highlighted several key facets of this technological exchange: Colonel-General Denis Lyamin has assumed the duties of head of Russia's Unmanned Systems Forces, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Friday. On August 5, Putin appointed Lyamin to lead the newly established branch of the military responsible for drone warfare. The Defence Ministry said on Friday that Defence Minister Andrei Belousov had signed the relevant order, formally installing Lyamin in the post. For about a decade, Livemint—News Desk has been a credible source for authentic and timely news, and well-researched analysis on national news, business, personal finance, corporates, politics and geopolitics. We bring the latest updates on all the listed companies on BSE and NSE, startups, mutual funds, Union ministries, geopolitics, and untapped human interest stories from around the world, helping our readers to stay informed on the latest developments around the globe. Our Coverage Areas 1. Companies: Comprehensive news and analysis on listed and unlisted companies, corporate announcements, corporate chatter, C-suite, business trends, hiring alerts, layoffs, work-life balance, world's top billionaires and richest and more. 2. Personal finance: Insights into mutual funds, small savings schemes like - PPF, SSY, post office savings scheme, stock to watch, personal loans, credit cards, top bank FDs, real estate, income tax and more. 3. Politics: Comprehensive coverage of general elections, state elections and bypolls, Lok Sabha, Vidhan Sabha, Parliament, PMO, PIB, finance ministry, home ministry, among other union ministries and government departments. 4. National News: From metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and e to untapped stories from rural India, we cover human interest, health, education, crime and courts, and law and order, among other areas of public interest. 5. Economy: In-depth analysis of India's macro and micro-economic indicators like- GDP, inflation, forex, fiscal deficit, current account deficit, interest rate cycle, economic recovery, RBI circulars, indirect taxes, GST, Insolvency and Bankruptcy imports, exports and everything that impacts Indian economy. 6. Geopolitics: Well-rounded and deeply researched coverage on US News, Oval Office European Union, Ukraine Russia War, middle-east crisis, royal families and global leaders like - Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un, Xi Jinping and premiers of other leading economies in the world. Meet the Team 1. Gulam Jeelani, Political Affairs Editor 2. Sugam Singhal, Senior Assistant Editor 3. Chanchal, Assistant Editor 4. Sanchari Ghosh, Chief Content Producer 5. Pratik Prashant Mukane, Chief Content Producer 6. Sayantani Biswas, Chief Content Producer 7. Ravi Hari, Deputy Chief Content Producer 8. Garvit Bhirani, Deputy Chief Content Producer 9. Akriti Anand, Senior Content Producer 10. Jocelyn Felix Fernandes, Senior Content Producer 11. Swastika Das Sharma, Content Producer 12. Mausam Jha, Content Producer 13. Riya R Alex, Trainee Content Producer Oops! Looks like you have exceeded the limit to bookmark the image. Remove some to bookmark this image.