Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that more than 8,000 North Korean soldiers were on Russian territory and that preparations were under way to deploy another 10,000 soldiers, as part of Pyongyang’s support for Moscow during the Russian-Ukrainian war. In a post on the X platform on Monday, Zelenskyy referred to what he called “new data” on the deployment of North Korean forces in Russia.
Zelenskyy announces preparations to deploy additional soldiers
He said the soldiers “are being selected for training and later deployment in Russia”. The Ukrainian president said in August that the number of North Korean soldiers who could be sent to fight alongside Russia could reach 50,000. At the time, he called on South Korea to provide his country with air-defence support.
In July, Seoul announced a 100 million US dollar aid package for Kyiv, but excluded lethal weapons from it. Zelenskyy’s remarks came after a dispute between Kyiv and Seoul erupted when he announced last week that Ukraine had transferred two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea.
Ukrainian and independent assessments also indicate that North Korea has supplied Moscow with millions of artillery and mortar shells, as well as ballistic missiles, long-range artillery systems and multiple-launch rocket systems.
