More recently, in April this year, Russia’s education minister said only 130 North Korean students were studying in Russia.
The recent number sets a historical record and appears to suggest a vast and sudden surge in academic interest in Russia — right after Moscow and Pyongyang signed a military treaty in June and shortly before reports emerged of North Korean troops being deployed to Russia for its war effort.
Western officials estimate up to 10,000 North Korean troops could be joining Russia’s armed forces in an apparent plan to contain and push back a Ukrainian incursion into the border region of Kursk.
The deployment has been slammed by Kyiv and Western officials, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy describing it as the “first step to a world war,” and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte calling it “historic” and a dangerous escalation.
Meanwhile, Moscow has neither confirmed nor denied the use of North Korean troops for its war plan.
“If there are images, then they must reflect something,” Russian President Vladimir Putin prevaricated in October in response to a journalist’s question about satellite images appearing to show North Korean troops on Russian soil.
