A Russian air force jet was tracked making a brief stop in North Korea late last week, likely tied to the recent deployments of North Korean troops to Russia, according to specialist outlet NK News.
A Newsweek map based on data from the Flightradar24 flight tracking platform illustrates the path followed by the the Ilyushin Il-62M—a jetliner capable of carrying nearly 200 passengers—which Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East on Thursday and landing in North Korea’s Sunan International Airport around 10:30 a.m. local time
Less than an hour later, the aircraft was back in the air on its return trip to Vlodivostok. The same jet was tracked again on Friday at approximately 4 p.m., and about eight hours later, it was seen flying just south of Kazan on a southwestern route that could have taken it Kursk.
Newsweek could not independently verify the purpose of the flight.
Newsweek
Last month, South Korea’s top intelligence agency reported that North Korea had deployed thousands of troops to Russia’s Far East, centered around Vladivostok.
The Pentagon estimates that there are now 11,000 to 12,000 North Korean soldiers in Russia, with roughly 10,000 stationed in the border region near Kursk, where Ukrainian forces launched a counteroffensive in August and have since gained control of approximately 250 square miles.
Some North Korean troops have already seen combat, according to a Ukrainian official cited by The New York Times, while a U.S. official told the newspaper that a “significant” number of North Korean soldiers have been killed.
Neither Moscow nor Pyongyang has officially acknowledged these troop deployments, nor is either denying them outright. Both nations have emphasized that their relationship aligns with international law.
These developments follow over a year of strengthened military cooperation between the two countries.
South Korean officials said that, since last September, North Korea has sent thousands of containers believed to contain munitions and other supplies to bolster Russian forces.
Last month, Russian lawmakers ratified a military agreement signed by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin during Putin’s state visit to Pyongyang in June. The pact, marking the first of its kind between the two countries since the Cold War, obligates each nation to provide “all means” of military assistance if either is attacked.
This development has raised concerns in South Korea, which has indicated it is considering directly supplying Ukraine with offensive weapons, depending on North Korea’s continued involvement in the conflict.
China, a critical economic partner for both North Korea and Russia, is also likely to be concerned over the deepening cooperation between the two heavily sanctioned countries, experts say.
Beijing may particularly worry about the prospect of Russia sharing advanced technologies to support North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs in exchange for the troop deployments, which could further destabilize the region and draw increased attention from the U.S. and allied militaries.
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese and Russian Foreign Ministries via email for comment.
