The US says that North Korean soldiers in Russian uniforms are advancing towards Ukraine.


WASHINGTON (AP) – Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that North Korean soldiers are wearing Russian uniforms and carrying Russian equipment. Moving towards Ukraine.In which he described as a dangerous and destabilizing development.

Austin was speaking at a press conference in Washington alongside South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, amid growing concerns about Pyongyang's deployment. As many as 12,000 troops in Russia.

The U.S. and South Korea say some North Korean troops are moving toward Russia's Kursk region on the Ukrainian border, where Kremlin forces are fighting. Struggled to push back Ukrainian incursions..

Some North Korean advance units have already arrived in the Kursk region, and Austin said it is “very likely” that Russia will use those troops in combat.

North Korea's move Strengthen your relationship with Russia. That has raised alarm bells around the world, as leaders worry about how it could escalate the war in Ukraine and how Russian military aid would flow to Pyongyang in return.

Speaking at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Wednesday, Ukraine's UN ambassador, Serhiy Kasselets, said he expected 4,500 North Korean troops to be on the border this week and to launch military operations against Ukrainian forces in November. Will start participating directly in the operations.

Austin said officials are discussing what to do about the deployment, which he said has the potential to be expanded or lengthened. Conflict in Ukraine. Asked if it could prompt other nations to become directly involved in the conflict, he acknowledged that it “could encourage others to take action” but did not provide any details.

“This is something we will continue to look at, and we will continue to work with our allies and partners to prevent Russia from using these troops in combat,” Austin said.

Kim said he did not necessarily believe the deployment would lead to war on the Korean Peninsula, but that it could. Increased security risks.

He said through an interpreter that it was “highly likely” that Pyongyang would demand advanced technologies in exchange for its troops, such as acquiring tactical nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

Both Kim and Austin called on North Korea to withdraw its troops.

Russia had to shift some resources to the Kursk border region to respond Ukraine offensive. US leaders have suggested that the use of North Korean forces to bolster Russia's defenses indicates that Moscow's losses during the more than two-year war have significantly reduced its military strength. .

“They're doing this because (Russian President Vladimir) Putin has lost a lot of troops,” Austin said, adding that Moscow has no choice but to mobilize more of its forces or turn to others for help. There is a choice to make.

He said that Russia has already requested military weapons from other countries. These include North Korea and Iran.

The United States estimates that there are currently about 10,000 North Korean troops in Russia. But others put the number higher. And Kyslytsya provided more specific numbers and details to the UN Security Council.

The Ukrainian ambassador said 12,000 North Koreans are being trained at five bases in eastern Russia, including at least 500 officers and three generals of the General Staff.

In addition to wearing Russian uniforms and carrying Russian small arms, Kyslytsya said he would be provided with Russian identification documents, specifically to conceal his presence. They are expected to be integrated into units manned by Russia's ethnic Asian minorities, including the Buryats, he said.

North Korea's UN ambassador Kim Song defended his country's increased military cooperation with Russia, saying Pyongyang was ready to respond if Russia's “sovereignty and security interests” were threatened.

Earlier, a senior South Korean presidential official, who spoke on condition of anonymity during a background briefing, said more than 3,000 North Korean forces were believed to be in war zones in western Russia. have moved towards

A Ukrainian official told The Associated Press that North Korean troops are stationed 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Ukraine's border with Russia. The official, who was not authorized to release the information publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, did not provide additional details.

North Korea has also supplied weapons to Russia, and earlier this month, the White House released photos it said were of North Korean shipping. 1,000 containers of military equipment There by rail.

A key worrisome question is what North Korea will get in return for providing troops. But officials have not yet said what Pyongyang has requested or what Moscow has offered.

In their meeting at the Pentagon, Kim and Austin agreed to continue large-scale military exercises, increase cooperation on nuclear deterrence and upgrade their capabilities to deter and respond to North Korean missile launches, including pre-launches. By improving the warning system, as per the issued fact sheet. by the Pentagon on Wednesday.

Austin and Kim are scheduled to meet with Secretary of State Anthony Blanken and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yol at the State Department on Thursday.

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AP correspondents Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul, South Korea, Ilya Novkov in Kiev, Ukraine, and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed.



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