President Volodymyr Zelenskiy of Ukraine strongly criticized the lack of response from his allies to Russia’s deployment of North Korean troops in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. He emphasized that a weak reaction could potentially embolden Russian President Vladimir Putin to further increase the number of North Korean troops involved in the war.
Zelenskiy Criticizes The US and Its Allies For Taking “Zero” Action In Reaction To Russia’s Use Of North Korean Troops In Combat
In an interview with South Korea’s KBS television channel, Zelenskiy said he believed Moscow was already trying to agree for North Korea to send engineering troops and a “large number of civilians” to work at Russian military plants.
Zelenskiy expressed his belief that President Putin is gauging the response of the Western world before deciding on the potential increase of military presence. He characterized the current level of reaction as insignificant.
Zelenskiy began publicly warning of North Korean involvement in the war on October 13 and even though Western allies have since described the move as a major escalation, they have not announced retaliatory measures or said they are preparing to implement any.
South Korea has offered intelligence assistance and wider cooperation on the matter, and it is considering sending a team of military monitors to Ukraine, according to South Korean officials.
In prepared remarks to the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday, Ukraine’s delegation named three North Korean generals it says are accompanying thousands of Korean People’s Army troops deployed to Russia in aid of Moscow’s war in Ukraine. The direct tone of Zelenskiy’s rhetoric pointed to mounting Ukrainian frustration over the extent of Western support for Kyiv at a critical time in the war with Russia, with the clock counting down to Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election.
Russian troops have been slowly advancing for months in eastern Ukraine and Kyiv’s outgunned and outnumbered forces have struggled to find a way to hold them back.
Russia has not denied the involvement of North Korean troops in the war. North Korea initially denied involvement, but has since defended the idea of deploying troops as being in line with international law.
Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood told the Security Council on Thursday that Washington had received information indicating that “right now” there are 8,000 North Korean troops in Russia’s southern Kursk region, which borders on northeastern Ukraine.
In his comments, Zelenskiy said he was surprised by the “silence” out of China, the world’s second economy, over the troop deployment.
“The Russian Federation discussed this issue with the West and confirmed that yes, there are military personnel from North Korea who will fight against Ukraine,” he said.