The reaction of our partners is not strong enough to the transfer of troops from North Korea to the territory of Russia for the war against Ukraine. Therefore, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is testing this. This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an interview with representatives of the leading media of the Nordic countries, UNN reports.
About North Korea. The information we have is a fact for us. We have a real problem. More than one country is acting against us. So North Korean soldiers are already on the territory of Russia, already preparing for battle. There are already 3,000 soldiers with officers and generals. We are not waiting, we understand that there will be additional thousands, they are on the way. We are receiving information from our intelligence that about 12 thousand are expected to arrive, and they will fight against us at the front
Zelensky recalled that he had a conversation with the President of South Korea. Zelensky noted that the South Korean president also understands that North Korean soldiers are already in Russia.
Is it dangerous? Yes, it is. I have had conversations with the prime ministers of the Nordic countries. I told them that I think the voice of the United States, the voice of NATO, the voice of Western partners, the voice of the Global South and China is not sounding as loud as it should be now regarding the presence of the North Korean contingent on the territory of Russia. I think this is very dangerous. It opens a new page in this war
The President believes that this will be just like at the very beginning of Russia's occupation of Crimea, when there was silence from the West.
No one wanted to react. I don't know why, but everyone was afraid of escalation. Putin is always testing, trying things out. How will it work? How will the West react? The same goes for the North Korean military. I have talked to many leaders, including NATO leaders. And I said that this is very dangerous. I think we need an effective response to this. So far we have heard some reaction, but it is not strong enough. That's why Putin is testing it. And that's why I don't know how many more soldiers from North Korea, or maybe from Iran, will come. There may be more
Addendum
The Financial Times, citing sources, reported that about 3000 North Korean troops were secretly deployed to the Kursk region of Russia, and were stationed in barracks about 50 km from the Ukrainian border.
US President Joe Biden saidthat North Korea's sending thousands of troops to Russia was a dangerous development amid Western fears that they would be used for Moscow's war in Ukraine.