US confirms North Korean troops in Russia

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Lerato Khumalo

Reports about soldiers from North Korea training in Russia for a possible deployment to Ukraine are causing unrest. Now the USA is providing insight into its findings.

The US government has reliable information that North Korean troops are in Russia. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said this to journalists on the sidelines of a visit to Rome. “What exactly are they doing there? That remains to be seen,” he said. “If they intend to take part in this war in the name of Russia, then that is a very, very serious problem,” emphasized the Pentagon chief, referring to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. This would not only have an impact in Europe, but also on the situation in the Indo-Pacific, he warned. Austin gave no further details.

According to South Korean intelligence, North Korea is said to have already sent a total of 3,000 soldiers to Russia. The troops are therefore in military facilities in Russia, where they are presumably being prepared for an operation against Ukraine. The secret service assumes that North Korea will send a total of 10,000 soldiers to Russia by December.