Some North Korean troops now in Russia’s Kursk
region, another 2,000 moving closer to Ukraine, Pentagon says
By
Matthew Adams
Stars and Stripes • October
29, 2024
Pentagon
Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder calls on a member of the press during a
briefing at the Pentagon on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024 in Washington. (Kevin
Wolf/AP)
WASHINGTON — A small number of North
Korean troops are now in Russia’s Kursk region with another roughly 2,000
troops in eastern Russia moving closer to the Ukraine border, the Pentagon said
Tuesday.
“We remain concerned that Russia
intends to use these soldiers in combat or to support combat operations against
Ukrainian forces in Kursk,” said Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon
press secretary.
Ryder could not say whether North
Korean troops are already fighting in Ukraine. But CNN reported a small number
of North Korean troops are inside Ukraine and officials expect that number to
grow as North Koreans complete training and move toward the front lines of a
war that has raged since the Russians invaded in February 2022.
Ukraine President Volodymyr
Zelenskyy claimed Friday that North Korean troops would be on the battlefield
within days.
North Korea has sent roughly 10,000
soldiers to train in eastern Russia, according to the Pentagon, and the number
of troops could increase.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin last
week was the first U.S. official to confirm North Korea has sent troops to
Russia. He will meet Wednesday at the Pentagon with South Korean Defense
Minister Kim Yong-hyun. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Austin on
Thursday will co-host Republic of Korea Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul
and Kim.
South Korean intelligence officials
first publicized reports that the Russian navy had taken 1,500 North Korean
special warfare troops to Russia this month.
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