North Korea has deployed troops to assist Russian forces in Ukraine, the ROK presidential office confirmed on Friday, with Seoul’s spy agency revealing that Russian naval vessels were used to transport DPRK special forces to the frontline early this month.

Close military ties between North Korea and Russia have effectively “escalated to actual troop deployment,” the South Korean presidential office said in a statement after an emergency security meeting headed by President Yoon Suk-yeol.

Moscow-Pyongyang ties now “pose a serious security threat not only to South Korea but also to the international community,” according to the statement.

Seoul also noted