The ‘Red-Blue Five-Pointed Star Flag’ of North Korea is not something typically found amid the shell-craters and blasted trenches of eastern Ukraine, but a picture of it flying alongside the Russian tricolour has driven fear into the hearts of men and women hardened by months of savage fighting.

Allegedly taken near atop a slag heap near the embattled city of Pokrovsk, the single blurry photo could indicate that Ukraine soldiers and civilians in the area are about to face an onslaught of thousands of troops from one of the strangest corners of the world.

Throughout the war, North Korea has been a steadfast ally of Russia, sending cash for weapons, providing artillery shells, and signing a mutual defence agreement in June that stipulated both countries would help each other repel external aggression.

Over the past week, however, Pyongyang appears to have sent soldiers not only to Russia, which Lloyd Austin, the US defence secretary, confirmed on Wednesday, but potentially also to the Ukrainian front lines.

A military official fighting on outside Pokrovsk told The Telegraph that his brigade had seen people who appeared to be eastern Asians walking around, and that there were “very many” soldiers on the Russian side.

“It’s impossible to identify them or confirm anyone. They’ve pulled up reserves and are now pushing very hard toward Selidovo,” a city in  the Pokrovsk region.

“They [the Russian side] hung a flag. They could be spreading disinformation to escalate the situation,” he added.