BRUSSELS: NATO confirmed on Monday that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia to bolster its forces in the ongoing war against Ukraine and that some have already been deployed in Russia’s Kursk border region, where Russian forces have been struggling to push back a Ukrainian incursion.
According to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, North Korean soldiers have already been deployed to the Russian border region of Kursk, where Russian forces have faced renewed Ukrainian offensives.
“Today, I can confirm that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and that North Korean military units have been deployed to the Kursk region,” Rutte said at NATO headquarters in Brussels. He described North Korea’s participation as “a dangerous expansion of Russia’s war” and a “significant escalation” in the conflict.
Rutte’s comments followed a high-level briefing by a South Korean delegation, comprising intelligence and military officials, to NATO’s 32 member ambassadors. The alliance is now consulting with Ukraine and its Indo-Pacific allies on how to respond to this new development.
Rutte confirmed plans to speak with South Korea’s president and Ukraine’s defense minister to closely monitor the unfolding situation.
The deployment of thousands of North Korean troops into the European conflict raises new concerns for Ukraine’s already strained forces, and adds to escalating geopolitical tensions across Asia, where Japan, Australia, and other nations in the Indo-Pacific region are keeping a watchful eye.
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Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, referencing intelligence reports, stated that North Korean troops could arrive on the battlefield imminently. Zelenskyy previously indicated that an estimated 10,000 North Korean soldiers were preparing to join Russian forces.
Days earlier, US and South Korean officials had released evidence pointing to North Korea’s involvement, with the US reporting that around 3,000 North Korean soldiers were sent to Russia for training.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to reshape global alliances have included strengthened ties with non-Western countries, including at a recent BRICS summit in Russia, where he met with leaders from China and India in a bid to counterbalance Western influence.
