Zelenskyy says Russia has begun fresh mobilisation, including North Korean troops

What happened

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in his 28 September evening address that Russia has initiated an additional wave of mobilisation, increasing recruitment through various means and planning to boost numbers of foreign nationals fighting in Ukraine. He referenced a report from Ukrainian Defence Intelligence as the source for this information.

Outside Brief is treating this as a source-led account. Any disputed responsibility, casualty figure, battlefield claim or single-source assertion should be treated as unconfirmed/hearsay unless confirmed by another reliable source or a named official. Zelenskyy highlighted that more than 8,000 North Korean military personnel are reported to be currently on Russian territory, with a further 10,000 troops being selected for training and impending deployment to Russia. Ukraine alleges this contingent is linked to Moscow’s operational and technological collaboration with Pyongyang, including Russian technical support for producing Shahed-type strike drones in North Korea.

The Ukrainian president called on governments whose citizens may be recruited by Russia to counter such efforts and emphasized the role of sanctions. He mentioned the Lindsey Graham Act alongside EU and global sanctions as tools to increase pressure on Moscow in response to these developments.

Known from the source

• Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave an evening address on 28 September citing Defence Intelligence of Ukraine.
• Zelenskyy claimed Russia has begun additional mobilisation and is recruiting more foreign nationals.
• Ukraine reports over 8,000 North Korean military personnel are on Russian territory, with 10,000 more being trained for deployment.
• Ukraine alleges Russia pays North Korea for technical support in producing Shahed-type strike drones.
• The Kremlin has signed a decree officially increasing Russian Armed Forces personnel to 2,441,630.

What remains unclear

This mobilisation claim follows Kremlin announcements increasing the official size of the Russian Armed Forces to over 2.4 million personnel. While Zelenskyy’s report is based on Ukrainian Defence Intelligence, the deployment of North Korean troops and the scale of recruitment have not been independently verified, nor confirmed by Russian or North Korean sources.

What remains unclear: Confirm whether the central claim is corroborated; until then treat it as unconfirmed/hearsay. Independent verification of North Korean troops on Russian territory and their intended deployment. Validation of the claim about North Korean involvement in Shahed-type drone production supported by Russia. Cross-checking the scale and methods of foreign national recruitment reported by Ukrainian Defence Intelligence.

Evidence note

Outside Brief has kept this brief source-led and attributed. Claims should be read alongside the original source linked below.

Original source: Ukrainska Pravda English. Open the source.