Where have North Korean troops been seen in Russia?
While North Korea has been supplying weapons to Russia for some time, the arrival of troops is a major escalation in its involvement in the war of Ukraine.
The first official evidence of large numbers of North Korean troops entering Russia was provided by the South Korean government, who last week published a press release outlining the increasingly close military cooperation between the two states.
A map of sites in the Russian far east linked to the reported presence of North Korean soldiers
According to the press release, an initial contingent of 1,500 North Korean special forces troops were transported on Russian naval ships to the port city of Vladivostok.
The South Koreans provided two high-resolution satellite images showing what they say are these troops in two sites in Russia.
The first shows a crowd of what the South Korean government estimates is 400 people assembled in an open space within a Russian military site close to the town of Ussuriysk, 98 kilometres north of Vladivostok.
Image released by South Korean intelligence purportedly showing North Korean troops at a Russian military site
The second image shows a smaller number of people, which the South Korean government state are around 250 North Korean soldiers.
Satellite image released by South Korean intelligence purportedly showing North Korean troops at a Russian military site
This image was captured further north than the first. It shows an area that appears to be a military site close to the city of Khabarovsk in the Russian far east.
Footage circulating online
Amid reports of North Koreans entering Russia, several videos circulated widely.
While Sky News cannot confirm they show North Korean troops, one shows a group of soldiers of east Asian appearance. The person filming the video states they are North Korean, referring to them as ‘allies’.
This video has been geolocated by Sky News to the town of Sergeyevka in the Russian far east.
A second video filmed nearby shows a group of soldiers training in a field at the same site.
Filmed from over a wall, the footage is too grainy to allow the soldiers to be identified visually, however, many have claimed it shows North Korean troops.
A third video, released by the Ukrainian government, shows troops being equipped. While it is not possible to geolocate this footage, the presence of boxes marked in Russian has been cited as evidence this shows North Korean troops in Russia.
What satellite images can tell us
While currently available videos do not tell a full story, more can be learned from satellite imagery.
An image captured by Maxar of the site in Sergeyevka shows the sudden appearance of trenches on the grounds of the base in early October.
Equipment visible in a military site purportedly housing North Korean troops in Russia. Pic: Maxar
Later in the month, equipment can be seen assembled in an area in the south of the site, showing it has remained in use. This coincides with the reported arrival of troops in the area and the appearance of the videos, and fits with reports that the North Koreans are training in the area.
Available satellite imagery appears to show that a nearby training site in Lifarevka is also currently in use.
A comparison of low and high-resolution imagery captured over the month of October shows several huts appear to have been renovated at the site.
Renovated huts and evidence of training activities at a Russian military site. Pic: Maxar
Training trenches and signs of activity can be seen in high-resolution images captured on 24 October.
Fighting in the Ukrainian frontlines often involves the use of trenches resembling those seen at both sites.
A North Korean flag appears on the frontline
Amid reports of North Korean troops being prepared for fighting in Ukraine, an image showing the North Korean flag next to that of Russia went viral.
A North Korean flag flying in Russian-held territory close to the Ukrainian frontline
Sky News has geolocated this to a former mining facility between the towns of Hirnyk and Tsukuryn in eastern Ukraine.
The site sits close to the frontline, with Tsukuryn being captured by the Russians in early October.
While the presence of the North Korean flag does not necessarily signal their arrival in Ukraine, it does suggest that frontline Russian forces are aware of North Korea’s increasing involvement in the conflict.
Weapon deliveries
North Korean support for the Russian war effort is not a new phenomenon.
In October 2023, the White House released imagery showing a Russian ship collecting containers of what the Americans claim were weapons from the North Korean port of Rason.
Prior to this time, the port at Rason had largely been empty. Sky News found there was little activity at its piers until the late summer, after which an increasing number of ships were visible throughout the autumn and winter.
A ship at a pier known to be used in the transfer of arms from North Korea to Russia
Between late August and mid-February, Sky News recorded 34 days during which ships were visible at Rason’s once-empty piers.
While it is not publicly known how much weaponry has been provided by North Korea, the White House alleged in February that 10,000 containers of ammunition and other military materials had been sent since September 2023.
The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
The COP29 climate talks have reached a last ditch deal on cash for developing countries, pulling the summit back from the brink of collapse after a group of countries stormed out of a negotiating room earlier.
The slew of deals finally signed off in the small hours of Sunday morning in Azerbaijan includes one that proved hardest of all – one about money.
Eventually the more than 190 countries in Baku agreed a target for richer polluting countries such as the UK, EU and Japan to drum up $300bn a year by 2035 to help poorer nations both curb and adapt to climate change.
It is a far cry from the $1.3trn experts say is needed, and from the $500bn that vulnerable countries like Uganda had said they would be willing to accept.
But in the end they were forced to, knowing they could not afford to live without it, nor wait until next year to try again, when a Donald Trump presidency would make things even harder.
Bolivia’s lead negotiator Diego Pacheco called it an “insult”, while the Marshall Islands’ Tina Stege said it was “not nearly enough, but it’s a start”.
UN climate chief Simon Stiell said: “This new finance goal is an insurance policy for humanity, amid worsening climate impacts hitting every country.
“No country got everything they wanted, and we leave Baku with a mountain of work still to do. So this is no time for victory laps.”
The funding deal was clinched more than 24 hours into overtime, and against what felt like all the odds.
The talks were rocked from the start by the incoming presidency of climate denier Mr Trump, the moment Argentina’s team were recalled back to Buenos Aires by their right-wing president and a controversial letter that sent shockwaves through the United Nations.
Pic: AP
The fraught two weeks of negotiations pitted the anger of developing countries who are footing the bill for more dangerous weather that they did little to cause, against the tight public finances of rich countries.
A relieved Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, climate envoy for Panama, said there is “light at the end of the tunnel”.
Just hours ago, the talks almost fell apart as furious vulnerable nations stormed out of negotiations in frustration over that elusive funding goal.
They were also angry with oil and gas producing countries, who stood accused of trying to dilute aspects of the deal on cutting fossil fuels.
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Climate-vulnerable nations storm out of talks
The UN talks work on consensus, meaning everyone has to agree for a deal to fly.
A row over how to follow up on last year’s pledge to “transition away from fossil fuels” was left unresolved and punted into next year, following objections from Chile and Switzerland for being too weak.
A draft deal simply “reaffirmed” the commitment but did not dial up the pressure in the way the UK, EU, island states and many others here wanted.
Saudi Arabia fought the hardest against any step forward on cutting fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change that is intensifying floods, drought and fires around the world.
Governments did manage to strike a deal on carbon markets at COP29, which has been 10 years in the making and will allow countries to trade emissions cuts.
‘Not everything we wanted’
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The UK’s energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said the deal is “not everything we or others wanted”, but described it as a “step forward”.
“It’s a deal that will drive forward the clean energy transition, which is essential for jobs and growth in Britain and for protecting us all against the worsening climate crisis,” he added.
“Today’s agreement sends the signal that the clean energy transition is unstoppable.
“It is the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century and through our championing of it we can help crowd in private investment.”
Protesters at the summit in Baku. Pic: AP
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UN climate summits ‘no longer fit for purpose’
The Azerbaijan team leading COP29 said: “Every hour of the day, we have pulled people together. Every inch of the way, we have pushed for the highest common denominator.
“We have faced geopolitical headwinds and made every effort to be an honest broker for all sides.”
At least 20 people have been killed and 66 injured in Israeli strikes on central Beirut, Lebanese authorities have said.
Lebanon‘s health ministry said the death toll could rise as emergency workers dig through the rubble looking for survivors. DNA tests are being used to identify the victims, the ministry added.
The attack destroyed an eight-storey residential building and badly damaged several others around it in the Basta neighbourhood at 4am (2am UK time) on Saturday.
The central Basta neighbourhood in Beirut
The Israeli military did not warn residents to evacuate before the attack and has not commented on the casualties.
At least four bombs were dropped in the attack – the fourth targeting the city centre this week.
A separate drone strike in the southern port city of Tyre this morning killed two people and injured three, according to the state-run National News Agency.
The victims were Palestinian refugees from the nearby al Rashidieh camp who were out fishing, according to Mohammed Bikai, spokesperson for the Fatah Palestinian faction in the Tyre area.
Israel’s military warned residents today in parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs that they were near Hezbollah facilities, which the army would target in the near future. The warning, posted on X, told people to evacuate at least 500 metres away.
The army said that over the past day it had conducted intelligence-based strikes on Hezbollah targets in Dahiyeh, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. It said it hit several command centres and weapons storage facilities.
Pic: AP
Israel has killed several Hezbollah leaders in air strikes on the capital’s southern suburbs.
Heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is ongoing in southern Lebanon, as Israeli forces push deeper into the country since launching a major offensive in September.
According to the Lebanese health ministry, at least 3,670 people have been killed in Israeli attacks there, with more than 15,400 wounded.
It has displaced about 1.2 million people – a quarter of Lebanon’s population – while Israel says about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed in northern Israel.
Read more:
No 10 indicates Netanyahu would be arrested
‘Dozens’ of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike
Meanwhile, six people, including three children and two women, were killed in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.
Some 44,176 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, according to the Gaza health ministry.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking another 250 hostage.
US envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region this week to try to end more than 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, ignited last October by the war in Gaza.
Mr Hochstein indicated progress had been made after meetings in Beirut on Tuesday and Wednesday, before going to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defence minister Israel Katz.
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