Biden administration officials are now saying that about 8,000 North Korean soldiers are now in Russia near Ukraine’s border and are preparing to help the Kremlin with Russia’s war efforts.
The new figure is a dramatic increase from a day earlier, when Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin would only say some of the troops had moved toward Ukraine’s border in the Kursk region, where Moscow’s forces have struggled to push back a Ukrainian incursion.That also would mean most of the North Korean troops that the U.S. and its allies say have been sent to Russia are now on the border with Ukraine.The U.S. has estimated a total of about 10,000 North Korean troops are in Russia. Seoul and its allies assessed that has increased to 11,000, while Ukraine has put the figure higher, at up to 12,000.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicates those troops have been trained for front-line action.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking alongside Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and their South Korean counterparts in Washington, said the troops have been trained “in artillery, UAVs, basic infantry operations, including trench clearing, indicating that they fully intend to use these forces in frontline operations.”Although the US has not yet seen the troops engaged in the actual fighting, Blinken warned Thursday that “should these troops engage in combat or combat support operations against Ukraine, they would become legitimate military targets.”The 8,000 North Korean troops now in Kursk represent a majority of the 10,000 the US says were deployed to Russia. The announcement of their impending use in combat comes as the US and its allies weigh how to respond to the escalating military partnership between Moscow and Pyongyang.“We are consulting closely with our allies and partners in other countries in the region on these reckless developments and on our response,” Austin said at Thursday’s press conference. The US will announce additional military support to Ukraine “in the coming days,” Blinken said.
The Biden administration is now reaching out to China to leverage its relationships with Moscow and Pyongyang to “curb” the entry of North Korean forces.
The U.S. had a “robust conversation” with China this week about the North Korean troops’ dispatch to Russia, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after a joint news conference with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and their South Korean counterparts on Thursday.”I think they know well the concerns that we have and the expectations that, both in word and deed, they’ll use the influence that they have to work to curb these activities,” he said.What North Korea may receive from Russia in return for the troops “should be a real concern to China,” Blinken added.
I suspect that Beijing will be unmoved by the Biden request.
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