North Korea has now confirmed what the United States believed for months, that it was sending troops to Ukraine to fight alongside the Russia military. Following North Korea’s confirmation, Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked North Korea for its help.
How many North Korean troops are believed to be fighting?
The U.S., Ukraine and South Korean intelligence agencies had said that North Korea supplied between 10,000 and 12,000 troops to Russia. Until now, there had been no confirmation.
According to The Associated Press, North Korea’s Central Military Commission of the ruling Workers’ Party said leader Kim Jong Un sent the troops, under a mutual defense treaty and that their orders were to “annihilate and wipe out Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers and liberate the Kursk area in cooperation with Russian armed forces.” He called them heroes.
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What did Russian President Putin say?
In a post on the Kremlin website, Putin praised the North Koreans who “shoulder to shoulder with Russian fighters, defended our Motherland as their own.” He, too, called them heroes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had estimated the number of North Korean troops killed or wounded in Ukraine at 4,000. However, the United States estimates were lower, at about 1,200. North Korea’s involvement would mark the country’s first participation in a major armed conflict since the Korean War in the early 1950s.
In addition to the troops, the AP reports that North Korea has supplied a vast number of weapons to Russia. Russia may reimburse North Korea by sending military and economic assistance to the country.
An analyst for the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy in South Korea said North Korea is not expected to pull its troops out of Russia anytime soon, as the war with Ukraine is still ongoing. South Korea has called for North Korea to withdraw its troops immediately, calling their involvement a grave provocation to international security.
What happens from here?
The Trump administration has been trying to broker a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia.
President Donald Trump said on Sunday, April 27, he hopes to reach an agreement in two weeks or fewer to end the fighting. However, he said he is surprised and disappointed Russia has continued to bomb cities in Ukraine during peace talks.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio called this a critical week ahead.
