FILE PHOTO: South Korean Minister of National Defense Shin Won-sik speaks during an interview with Reuters in Seoul, South Korea, August 7, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Soo-hyeon/File Photo
SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's national security adviser Shin Won-sik said Russia has provided North Korea with anti-air missiles and air defence equipment in return for sending troops to support Moscow in its war against Ukraine.
In an interview with South Korean broadcaster SBS aired on Friday, Shin said Russia had given North Korea economic and military technology support, when asked what Pyongyang stood to gain from dispatching its troops to Russia.
"It is understood that North Korea has been provided with related equipment and anti-aircraft missiles to strengthen Pyongyang's weak air defence system," Shin said.
Pyongyang also appears to have been given military technology by Russia to support its satellite program following its failed attempt to launch a spy satellite earlier this year, he said.
South Korean lawmakers said this week that around 10,900 North Korean troops had been deployed to Kursk as part of Russia's airborne and marine units facing Ukrainian forces. Some of these units had already participated in battles, said the lawmakers, who were citing a briefing by South Korea's spy agency.
(Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Ed Davies)
