This image, captured from a video posted on X by the Centre for Strategic Communication and Information Security of Ukraine, shows what appears to be North Korean soldiers receiving apparent Russian gear, Oct. 18. Yonhap

U.S. intelligence agencies believe that North Korea's troop deployment to Russia was Pyongyang's idea, The New York Times (NYT) reported Monday, although some Western officials thought Moscow had turned to the reclusive regime in a desperate need for military manpower amid its war in Ukraine.

Citing U.S. officials, the newspaper reported on the agencies' assessment that Pyongyang proposed the idea though Russian President Vladimir Putin quickly embraced it.

Pyongyang has sent some 12,000 troops to support Russia in its war against Ukraine, officials in Seoul and Washington have said. They confirmed the North has suffered casualties, including fatalities, during combat alongside Russian forces.

The NYT said that U.S. officials do not believe North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has received anything immediate in return, but they said that Kim appears to be hoping Russia will repay the favor in the future by offering diplomatic support, assisting if a crisis breaks out, and providing technology.

During a U.N. Security Council session last week, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield revealed U.S. information that Moscow has sent air defense systems to the North, while underscoring Washington's concerns over Moscow's "intent" to share satellite and space technologies with Pyongyang.

She also said that Pyongyang has shipped more than 20,000 shipping containers of munitions to Russia to date, including at least 6 million heavy artillery rounds, along with well over 100 ballistic missiles.

Meanwhile, South Korea's military said Monday that Pyongyang appears to be preparing to deploy additional troops and military equipment to Russia, possibly including suicide drones. (Yonhap)