NATO has assured Ukraine of further help after the transfer of North Korean troops to Russia. A statement released by the council of 32 NATO countries on Friday said the allies “remain as resolute as ever in supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes for Ukraine to prevail.”
The aim is to enable Ukraine to build up armed forces that are capable of successfully combating Russian aggression. NATO is reacting to Western intelligence findings that North Korea is now also providing thousands of soldiers in support of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
It is said to have already supplied large quantities of ammunition and ballistic missiles. The provision of combat troops represents a dangerous escalation of support, the Western defence alliance now says.
Kiev says there have already been casualties in skirmishes between Ukrainian and North Korean soldiers in the Russian border area. “Yes, there have already been losses. That is a fact,” said President Volodymyr Zelenksy on Thursday, without giving details.
He said some of the 11,000 North Korean soldiers in the Russian border area of Kursk are involved in combat against the Ukrainian army.