State media images showed leader Kim Jong Un honoring the flag-draped coffins of North Korean soldiers killed helping Russia fight Ukraine, as Seoul's Defense Ministry said Tuesday it saw no signs of further troop deployments yet.

The nuclear-armed North has become one of Russia's main allies during its more than three-year-long Ukraine offensive, sending thousands of troops and container loads of weapons to help the Kremlin oust Ukrainian forces from Kursk.

Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, according to South Korean lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun, citing information from Seoul's spy agency.