There will be more: Zelenskyy's grim forecast on North Korean troops at the front

Currently, 11,000 North Korean soldiers are stationed in Russia’s Kursk region. Some of these troops have already participated in combat against Ukrainian forces, with reported casualties among them.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made this statement during a press conference following his participation in the European Political Community summit.

Global response

“There are countries that reacted loudly, others remained silent, and some responded quietly. But we are working with them,” Zelenskyy assured.

A New wave of escalation

The President emphasizes that the arrival of North Korean troops signals a new wave of escalation by Russia.

“The involvement of another nation’s army in the war against Ukraine. Many leaders said that if there was a new wave of escalation, they might consider enabling long-range (weapons to reach deep into Russian territory). This is the moment to act on that,” Zelenskyy stated.

Consequences 

Zelenskyy warned that a lack of strong international response to the presence of North Korean troops would only encourage Putin to bring in more.

“I spoke even before the arrival of these 11,000. When we saw the first 20 — officers and technical staff. We initially warned about 3,000, then 12,000. Now we are warning that, unless appropriate weapons and political pressure are applied, the next step could see a significantly larger use of North Korean forces. Putin always watches to see how the world will respond, and right now, that response is insufficient,” Zelenskyy concluded.

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