US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday that North Korean troops wearing Russian uniforms and carrying Russian equipment are moving to the Kursk region near Ukraine, in what he called a dangerous and destabilising move.

Mr Austin was speaking at a press conference with South Korean defense minister Kim Yong-hyun, as concerns grow about Pyongyang’s deployment of as many as 11,000 troops to Russia.

He said officials are discussing what to do about the deployment.

Mr Austin said the US remains concerned that Russia will use the North Korean troops in combat, but “whether they will be employed in the fight is yet to be seen”.

Pentagon US Korea
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin, centre right, with South Korean defence minister Kim Yong Hyun at the Pentagon (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)

“This is something that we’re going to continue to watch, and we’re going to continue to work with our allies and partners to discourage Russia from employing these troops in combat,” Mr Austin said.

Mr Kim said he does not necessarily believe the deployment will trigger war on the peninsula, but could increase security threats between the two nations.

There is a “high possibly” that Pyongyang would ask for higher technologies in exchange for its troop deployment, such as in nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities, he said, speaking through an interpreter.

Seoul and its allies assess that the number of North Korean troops now dispatched in Russia has increased to 11,000, according to a senior South Korean presidential official, who spoke on condition of anonymity during a background briefing.

More than 3,000 of them are believed to have moved toward combat zones in western Russia, the official said, without specifying the locations.

Some North Korean advance units of those troops have already arrived in Kursk, where Ukraine has successfully held territory after a surprise counter-incursion in August.