Kim Jong Un’s decision to deploy thousands of military engineers and construction workers to help rebuild Russia’s war-torn Kursk border region could be a stepping stone to deeper North Korean involvement in the Ukraine war, as the allies continue to openly defy sanctions in pursuit of closer cooperation.

Following talks with Kim on Tuesday, Russian security chief Sergei Shoigu said the DPRK will dispatch 1,000 mine clearance specialists and 5,000 military construction workers to Kursk, in addition to the some 12,000 soldiers already deployed there since last fall.

The U.S. State Department reportedlycalled North Korea’s latest deployment plans in