NATO, Pentagon confirm deployment of North Korean troops to Russia

The confirmation comes aft Ukrainian subject quality had recorded the beingness of North Korean units successful Russia’s Kursk region.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has confirmed that North Korean troops person been deployed to Russia days aft Ukrainian subject quality recorded the beingness of North Korean units successful the Kursk borderline region.

The Ukrainian subject has been operating successful the Kursk portion since staging a large incursion successful August.

Rutte said connected Monday that the determination represented “a important escalation” of Pyongyang’s engagement successful “Russia’s amerciable war” successful Ukraine, a breach of United Nations Security Council resolutions and a “dangerous expansion” of the conflict.

“The deepening subject cooperation between Russia and North Korea is simply a menace to some Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security,” Rutte told reporters aft NATO officials and diplomats were briefed by a South Korean delegation.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol sounded the alarm astir the troops during telephone calls with Rutte and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and added that Seoul would proceed to consult intimately with NATO.

US President Joe Biden besides called the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia “dangerous”.

Earlier connected Monday, the US Pentagon noted that North Korea has sent immoderate 10,000 troops to bid successful Russia.

“A information of those soldiers person already moved person to Ukraine, and we are progressively acrophobic that Russia intends to usage these soldiers successful combat oregon to enactment combat operations against Ukrainian forces successful Russia’s Kursk Oblast,” Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told journalists.

Officials from Seoul 🇰🇷 person briefed #NATO Allies & Indo-Pacific partners connected the North Korean 🇰🇵 unit deployment to Russia.

This is:

1. a important escalation successful DPRK’s involvement

2. yet different breach of UN 🇺🇳 resolutions

3. a unsafe enlargement of Russia’s war. pic.twitter.com/0XEzz0d037

— Mark Rutte (@SecGenNATO) October 28, 2024

Kyiv has urged its allies to proviso it with much weapons and let heavy strikes into Russia, which invaded Ukraine successful February 2022. Moscow has warned Kyiv’s Western allies against providing long-range weapons to beryllium utilized against Russia.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha besides highlighted that Kyiv had been informing astir the North Korean deployment for weeks, yet determination was nary beardown effect from allies.

“Now NATO Secretary General confirmed this. The bottommost line: perceive to Ukraine. The solution: assistance restrictions connected our long-range strikes against Russia now,” helium said connected X.

The Ukrainian president’s main of staff, Andriy Yermak, said sanctions unsocial would not beryllium a capable effect to North Korean involvement.

He said that Kyiv needs “weapons and a wide program to forestall North Korea’s expanded involvement”.

“The force understands strength. Our allies person this strength,” Yermak said connected X.

The Kremlin had initially dismissed reports astir a North Korean deployment arsenic “fake news”. But past Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin did not contradict that North Korean troops were successful Russia and said it was Moscow’s concern however to instrumentality a concern pact with Pyongyang.

Moreover, a North Korean Foreign Ministry authoritative did not corroborate media reports astir a unit deployment to Russia, but said if Pyongyang had taken specified action, helium believed it would beryllium successful enactment with planetary norms.