According to Washington, up to 8,000 North Korean soldiers “have been deployed in the Kursk region” in Russia.
The Ukrainian army has controlled large swathes of the territory in this area since August.
This is where the first fighting between the soldiers of Kim Jong Un and those of kyiv took place, a Ukrainian official said on Monday.
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War in Ukraine: attacks in Russia are increasing
Has the North Korean army entered the scene? Fighting between kyiv troops and soldiers sent by Kim Jong Un says Ukrainian official (new window) would have taken place in recent hours. Information which, although it has not been confirmed by Moscow, coincides with the visit to the Kremlin of the head of North Korean diplomacy.
“The first North Korean soldiers have already come under fire in the Kursk region“, said the head of the Ukrainian center for combating disinformation, Andri Kovalenko, on Telegram (new window). This area, in Russian territory, has been controlled since August by the Ukrainian army over several hundred km². And, according to Westerners, this is where North Korean troops were to be deployed these days.
Up to 8,000 North Koreans “deployed in the Kursk region”
Citing the American intelligence services, the head of diplomacy Antony Blinken indicated last Thursday that of the 10,000 North Korean soldiers who, according to Washington, entered Russia, up to 8,000 “have been deployed to the Kursk region.” “We have not yet seen these troops deploy into combat against Ukrainian forces, but we expect this to happen in the coming days“, he then clarified.
Russia, he said, equipped North Korean soldiers with Russian uniforms and trained the troops in artillery, drones, basic infantry operations, including trench clearing, “which indicates that it intends to use these forces in front-line operations.”
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Russia: why the deployment of North Korean soldiers worries South Korea
On the Kremlin's side, the deployment of these soldiers to fight against kyiv's troops remains a taboo subject. On the other hand, the rapprochement with Pyongyang is highlighted. A video published this Monday by Moscow shows Vladimir Putin, smiling, shaking hands and chatting with Choe Son Hui in the presence of his Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, and his advisor Yuri Ushakov.
“There is no doubt that (…) the Russian army and people will achieve a great victory” in Ukraine, Choe Son Hui declared on Friday, upon his arrival in the Russian capital. Before adding: “We reaffirm that we will always stand firmly alongside our Russian comrades until Victory Day.”
