The deployment of North Korean soldiers to fight on the Ukrainian front alongside Russian forces would constitute a “ significant escalation » in this war, said NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Monday October 21.
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“ I spoke with the South Korean President (Yoon Suk Yeol) about the close partnership between NATO and Seoul », indicated, Monday October 21, Mark Rutte, the head of the Atlantic Alliance on X (formerly Twitter). “ North Korea sending troops to fight with Russia in Ukraine would mark significant escalation “, he added. Some 1,500 North Korean special forces troops are already in Russia acclimatizing and are expected to head to the front soon, the South Korean intelligence agency said two days ago, which it expects to dispatch of around ten thousand soldiers in total. Questioned on this point, Mr. Rutte indicated that the Alliance could not confirm “ at this stage » North Korea’s deployment of troops to Russia. “ But, of course, that can change “, he added.
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In Seoul, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun expressed “ serious concerns » from Seoul « regarding the recent dispatch of North Korean troops to Russia and strongly demanded the immediate withdrawal of North Korean forces and a cessation of cooperation in this area “, said the ministry in a press release. The deputy minister told Russian Ambassador to South Korea Georgy Zinoviev that North Korea’s supply of weapons and troops to Russia for the war in Ukraine ” poses a significant threat to the security of not only South Korea, but also the international community “. He also “ stressed that such actions violate numerous UN Security Council resolutions and the UN Charter “.
A mysterious treaty
As relations between Pyongyang and Seoul have deteriorated in recent months, nuclear-armed North Korea has moved even closer to Russia, an ally of the North Korean regime since its creation after the Second World War. worldwide. South Korea and the United States have long claimed that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sends weapons used in Ukraine to Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin made a rare visit to Pyongyang in June 2024, during which the two countries signed a mutual defense treaty, the details of which have not been released. This has fueled speculation about further arms transfers – which violate UN sanctions packages against Russia and North Korea.
In exchange for sending soldiers to help Russia in Ukraine, “ Kim Jong-un aims to acquire military technologies, from surveillance satellites to submarines », Declared to AFP, Cheong Seong-chang, director of strategy for the Korean peninsula at the Sejong Institute.
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