North Korean troops are now in Kursk to help Russia, NATO confirms

BRUSSELS — North Korean soldiers assisting Moscow have been deployed to Kursk, the Russian region partly controlled by Ukrainian troops, NATO chief Mark Rutte said Monday.

His remarks, confirming earlier intelligence from Ukraine, mean that North Korean troops are now in — or ready for — combat with Ukraine’s army. Kyiv’s military captured parts of Kursk in August during an operation that represented the first military offensive into Russia since World War II. 

Pyongyang’s battlefield assistance for Russian President Vladimir Putin has alarmed Western allies and Rutte pointed to the North Korean troop deployment as a “dangerous expansion” of the conflict.

“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 told reporters, soon after a meeting with a senior official from South Korea’s intelligence service.

The NATO secretary-general added that he would call South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov later Monday.

Ukraine has hoped to use the incursion to force Russia to redeploy its troops currently in eastern Ukraine, where it has been steadily grinding forward. 

Moscow’s deployment of North Korean troops marks “a significant escalation in the DPRK’s ongoing involvement in Russia’s illegal war” and “a dangerous expansion of Russia’s war,” Rutte said, referring to North Korea’s official name.

On the other hand, Rutte said the deployment shows Russia’s weakness and is “a sign of Putin’s growing desperation.” 

“Over 600,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in Putin’s war, and he is unable to sustain his assault in Ukraine without foreign support,” he said. “This is because the Ukrainians are fighting back with courage, resilience and ingenuity.”

“NATO calls on Russia and the DPRK to cease these actions immediately,” he added.

This story is being updated.