NATO said North Korean troops have been deployed to Russia’s Kursk region

NATO said for the first time that North Korean troops had been deployed to Russia and were operating in the Kursk border area, where Ukrainian troops are stationed.

The alliance’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, said he could confirm the deployment after weeks of intelligence reports, following a meeting with South Korean security and defense officials on Monday.

The newly appointed NATO chief said the deployment represented a “significant escalation” and “dangerous expansion” of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Last week, President Vladimir Putin refused to deny that North Korean troops had arrived in Russia, after it was reported that Pyongyang was preparing to send thousands of soldiers to support its ally.

“This is our sovereign decision,” Mr. Putin said, avoiding the question during the press conference. “Whether we use it or not, where, how or whether we participate in exercises, training or transfer of some experience. That’s our business. “

Rutte’s intervention on Monday marked the first time NATO has officially acknowledged that Pyongyang forces are operating in Russia. He added that North Korea sent ballistic missiles and millions of rounds of ammunition to Moscow for use in Ukraine.

In return, President Putin agreed to send military technology and other assistance to help North Korea evade international sanctions, Rutte said. This partnership is “undermining global peace and security”, he added.

His warning that North Korean troops are operating in Kursk will cause concern in Western capitals.

In a post on X, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote: “North Korean soldiers are deployed to support Russia’s war of aggression. It is a serious escalation in this war and is threat to global peace”.

She added that the EU would “respond together with like-minded partners”.

It is unclear exactly how many North Korean soldiers have been sent to Russia.

South Korea’s intelligence agency said earlier this month that at least 1,500 North Korean soldiers had gone to Russia.

And on Monday, the US Department of Defense estimated that about 10,000 North Korean soldiers had been sent for training in eastern Russia.

Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said that “a portion” of those troops had moved closer to Ukraine, adding that the United States was increasingly concerned that Russia would use these troops “in combat or in support of combat operations against Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk Oblast.” [region].”

President Joe Biden added his voice to the growing insecurity when he said that North Korea’s help for Russia in Ukraine is “very dangerous.”

Meanwhile, fighting continues between Moscow and Kiev forces more than two months after Ukrainian troops first entered Russia’s western region in a shocking operation.

Russia is said to have redeployed thousands of soldiers to the area, helping to stop Ukraine’s advance. The campaign has seen Kiev’s forces claim around 250 square kilometers of territory, but it appears to have failed in its main goal of deflecting Moscow’s momentum in eastern Ukraine.

The appearance of North Korean forces in Kursk could put more pressure on the troops fighting in Kyiv.

A senior Ukrainian official told the New York Times that about 5,000 elite North Korean soldiers are expected to join the Russian detachment in the border area on Monday. President Volodymyr Zelensky also said Friday that his government has information that those troops could be on the battlefield in the next few days.

Western leaders have warned for weeks that such a move would risk deepening the conflict.

Last week, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko – a staunch ally of President Putin – appeared to repeat that assessment. He told the BBC that such a move would mark “a step towards an escalation of the conflict”.

North Korea and Russia have become increasingly close since Moscow found itself largely isolated following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Earlier this year, North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un reached an agreement agreed with President Putin and committed to Help each other when “aggressive” against either country.

The US has repeatedly accused Pyongyang of sending a large amount of military equipment to Russia, including ballistic missiles and launchers.

However, some experts have questioned the extent to which Pyongyang’s military can support Russia’s war effort. They said that, in addition to the language barrier, the North Korean military has no recent combat experience.

A recent video obtained by Ukrainian defense intelligence officials shows the Russian military expressing doubts about the way the North Korean military is commanded and supplied.

Moscow’s full-scale invasion has now lasted more than two and a half years, with Rutte claiming that more than 600,000 Russian troops have now been killed or wounded in the war. He said the Kremlin “cannot sustain its attack on Ukraine without foreign support”.

Separately, President Zelensky said on Monday that about 650,000 Russian soldiers had been killed or wounded. “Surname [Russians] not collecting bodies… their people are rotting on the ground,” he said in an interview with The Times of India.

Official casualty updates from both sides are rare.

But according to an analysis by BBC Russian, more 70,000 Russian troops were confirmed dead in combat.

In February, Zelensky said about 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Estimates by some Western media suggest that number is much higher.