There is growing interest in why the United States, despite having world-class intelligence capabilities, has only recently acknowledged North Korea’s troop deployment to Russia. Some foreign media outlets suggest that the delay is not due to a lack of intelligence but rather a cautious approach ahead of the presidential election, especially since both Ukraine and South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) confirmed the deployment earlier.
On Wednesday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stated at a press conference in Rome, Italy, “… there is evidence that there are DPRK troops in Russia.” This was the first official acknowledgment from a government official regarding the deployment.
The U.S. government previously maintained a cautious stance: If the media reports about the deployment are true, it is “concerning.”
After Austin’s acknowledgment, other government officials quickly confirmed the information. On the same day, Reuters reported that White House spokesperson John Kirby stated, “There’s — there’s three sites that we assess right now that the — this first tranche of about 3,000 are being trained.”
According to Kirby, North Korean soldiers traveled by ship from Wonsan, North Korea, to Vladivostok in early October before moving to training facilities in eastern Russia.
This official acknowledgment came after both Ukraine and South Korea had already disclosed North Korea’s involvement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy publicly stated on October 13 that North Korea was sending not only weapons but also troops to support Russia. He later provided details, mentioning the formation of two regiments of 6,000 soldiers each. NIS also reported to the National Assembly about deploying around 12,000 troops.
Despite the detailed reports from Ukraine and South Korea, the U.S. had maintained its cautious approach until recently.
U.S. political media outlets have focused on analyzing why the United States, with its world-class military power and supporting intelligence capabilities, belatedly confirmed North Korea’s deployment to Russia. This approach differs from their proactive disclosure of North Korea-Russia relations, including North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s visit to Russia in 2022 and North Korea’s weapons support.
Political media outlets in the U.S., including Axios and The Hill, have analyzed the timing of the U.S. acknowledgment, suggesting that the delay might have been intentional. They argue that the U.S. government, which has access to world-class intelligence through its 18 agencies—including the CIA, NSA, DNI, and NRO—likely had the information earlier but opted to delay its public confirmation.
The delayed acknowledgment of this large-scale deployment is increasingly viewed as an attempt to avoid influencing the upcoming U.S. presidential election, which is now just over 10 days away.
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East and the potential for the Russia-Ukraine war to escalate into an international conflict could potentially disadvantage Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate.
There are also predictions that North Korea might ramp up hostile actions just before the U.S. election. The Diplomat forecasts that North Korea may escalate conflict risks or intensify hostile movements, such as destroying inter-Korean connection roads, in the lead-up to the U.S. presidential election.
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