Zelensky pointed to the “risks” of North Korea sending more troops and equipment to Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that more than 3,000 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded in Russia’s Kursk region, and warned that Pyongyang may send more personnel and equipment to the Russian army.

“There are risks that North Korea will send additional forces and military equipment to the Russian army,” Zelensky said in his statements to Channel X after receiving a report from his top military commander, Oleksandr Sirsky.

“We will have concrete responses to that,” Zelensky said.

North Korean casualty estimates are higher than those provided by the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul, which said Monday that at least 1,100 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded.

This assessment is in line with a briefing provided by the South Korean spy agency last week, which reported that about 100 people were killed and 1,000 others were injured in the area.

Zelensky said he cited preliminary data. Reuters was unable to independently verify reports of combat casualties.

Reports claim that 12,000 soldiers have already been sent

Russia has neither confirmed nor denied the presence of North Koreans on its side. Pyongyang initially dismissed reports of the troop deployment as “fake news,” but a North Korean official said any such deployment would be legal.

According to Ukrainian and allied countries’ assessments, North Korea has sent about 12,000 soldiers to Russia.

Some have been deployed to fight in Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukraine still controls a sliver of territory after a major cross-border incursion in August.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff added that it had detected signs that Pyongyang was planning to produce suicide drones for shipment to Russia, in addition to the 240mm multiple rocket launchers and 170mm self-propelled howitzers that had already been supplied.

Kiev continues to pressure its allies for a tougher response, as it says that Moscow and Pyongyang’s transfer of war experience and military technology poses a global threat.

“For the world, the cost of restoring stability is always much higher than the cost of effective pressure on those who destabilize the situation and destroy lives,” Zelensky said.