New video suggests North Korean soldiers are training in Russia amid reports of their impending deployment to Kursk — and to Ukraine

Amid reports of North Korean soldiers being sent to Russia, a video has surfaced showing what appears to be North Korean troops training in the Russian Far East.

Open source intelligence (OSINT) analysts were able to geolocate the footage and believe it was filmed at the base of Military Unit 44980, home to Russia’s 127th Motorized Rifle Division in Primorsky Krai, near the North Korean border. This area was previously the site of the “Vostok-2022” exercises, which involved Chinese troops. However, The Insider’s analysis concludes that the video in question was not taken during those exercises. The uniforms and gear of the foreign soldiers seen in the new video do not resemble those seen in footage from “Vostok-2022.” Additionally, the vegetation in the footage does not match that of the month of September, when the exercises took place.

A Korean translator who reviewed the video for The Insider noted that one of the soldiers shouted, “Follow the black line.” The translator suggested that the language used likely reflects a North Korean dialect.

Recently, Ukrainian Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov, head of the country’s military intelligence agency (HUR), told The War Zone that around 11,000 North Korean infantry troops are being trained in eastern Russia, and that they are expected to begin fighting in Ukraine starting from Nov. 1. According to Budanov, these forces will use Russian equipment and ammunition.