In the first public confirmation by the US, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday there is evidence that North Korean soldiers are present in Russia, and it remained to be seen what they would be doing there.
Washington has proof North Korean troops are present in Russia, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters in Rome on Wednesday.
“There is evidence that there are DPRK troops in Russia. What exactly they are doing? Left to be seen. These are things that we need to sort out,” Austin said.
Austin’s comment is Washington’s first public confirmation of previous statements made by Ukraine and South Korea.
Hours earlier, Ukraine’s military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said that the first North Korean units were expected to arrive in Russia’s Kursk region on Wednesday. They could supposedly help Russia resist Ukraine’s incursion.
Earlier in October, Budanov said that the first group would consist of 2,600 soldiers out of the total number of around 11,000 North Korean troops in Russia, which will be “ready to fight” in Ukraine by 1 November.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that two North Korean brigades of up to 6,000 personnel each are currently undergoing training in Russia.
Zelenskyy earlier said that according to military intelligence, some North Korean officers are already in the occupied territories of Ukraine.
Seoul is considering the possibility of deploying a team of military personnel from intelligence units to Ukraine following reports on Pyongyang’s involvement in Russia’s full-scale invasion, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.
The South Korean teams would be able to help further analyse Pyongyang’s warfare tactics and combat capabilities.
