Kim Yong-hyun, chairman of the National Defense Commission, said, "North Korea, Russia do as they are told"Bullet-riding mercenaries, not dispatched soldiers."

At the parliamentary inspection of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee today (24th), Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun mentioned the North Korean military's recent trend that has been confirmed to have sent troops to Russia.

Minister Kim said, "The North Korean military's actions should be viewed as 'mercenaries' rather than general 'soldiers'. He strongly criticized this, saying that he was not given any authority to operate and was actually sent to act as a "bullet-asser," as Russia told him to do.

Meanwhile, the White House officially confirmed that North Korean troops were sent to Russia and expressed concern about the possibility of being deployed to the war in Ukraine.

John Kirby, the White House National Security Council's communications adviser, said in a briefing that North Korea had sent at least 3,000 troops to eastern Russia in the early and mid-months.

The North Korean military said it traveled by boat from Wonsan area to Vladivostok, Russia, and is now training at several Russian military training sites in eastern Russia.

Let's meet the Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun's opening remarks and video from the National Assembly's Defense Committee.