The deployment of North Korean troops to Russia was initiated by Pyongyang, not Moscow, according to U.S. officials. The initiative was swiftly approved by Vladimir Putin, as reported by The New York Times,

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has, for the first time, sent combatant units abroad, to aid Russia in the war in Ukraine. As noted in the Joint Statement on the DPRK’s Deployment of Troops to Russia this development indelibly connects the Indo-Pacific and European theaters,

While some Western officials initially viewed the arrival of North Korean soldiers in Russia as evidence of the Kremlin’s desperation, U.S. agencies now reportedly believe the idea was North Korea’s initiative,

After two years of intense courtship, progressing from warm words to vital weapons, summits in Pyongyang to 11,000 soldiers on the ground in Russia, the burgeoning relationship between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un was signed in blood this week when the first stories emerged of North Korean casualties on the Ukrainian battlefield.

Ukraine's military intelligence says that North Korean troops are suffering heavy losses in the Kursk region and are facing logistical difficulties as a result of Ukrainian attacks

North Korean troops deployed in Russia’s Kursk Oblast continue to suffer significant losses, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) reported on Dec. 26. Russia has stationed approximately 12,000 North Korean soldiers in the region since August to assist in ousting Ukrainian forces.

Ukraine hits ballistic missile propellant plant in Rostov Oblast, Stratcom reports North Korean troops in Kursk Oblast endure heavy losses, logistical struggles, Ukrainian military intelligence says 18 Russian soldiers allegedly killed in Ukraine's Dec.