Ukraine updates: NATO says North Korean troops in Russia

North Korea's foreign minister, Choe Son Hui, is on her way to Moscow, state media KCNA and Russian officials said on Tuesday.

This is her second trip to Russia in the past six weeks and comes amid rising concerns about Pyongyang's involvement in Moscow's war in Ukraine.

A delegation led by Choe left on Monday for an official visit to Russia, KCNA said in its report without elaborating.

"The visit of the head of the DPRK Foreign Ministry to the Russian Federation is taking place within the framework of a strategic dialogue — following an agreement to enhance ties reached by the leaders of our countries during the June 2024 summit," the Russian Embassy said in a statement.

The US says North Korea has sent some 10,000 troops to train in Russia — three times its initial estimate.

"We believe that the DPRK has sent around 10,000 soldiers in total to train in eastern Russia that will probably augment Russian forces near Ukraine over the next several weeks," Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told the media.

Initially, Washington had estimated the number of North Korean troops in Russia to be at 3,000. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned North Korea could "soon" have as many as 12,000 soldiers in Russia, while US President Joe Biden slammed the deployment as "very dangerous."

Croatia plans to supply Ukraine with 30 battle tanks and 30 infantry fighting vehicles from the Cold War era, its Defense Ministry said on Monday. The deal will also include ammunition and spare parts.

Croatia will purchase up to 50 newer Leopard 2 A8 tanks from Germany to enable it to pass on the older equipment. 

The move was announced in a letter signed by the countries' defense ministers, Ivan Anusic and Boris Pistorius.

The Croatian Defense Minsitry said that the value of the older material being sent to Ukraine would be deducted from the purchasing price for the new tanks. 

"The added value of this purchase model is the help for Ukraine in their fight against Russian aggression," the ministry said in a statement. 

Anusic said the project would be implemented quickly, calling it crucial for the "modernization" of Croatia's army. 

"The first [tanks] will be given to Ukraine this year already," Pistorius said in Berlin. "We have no time to lose here." 

The case could cause some friction in Zagreb. Croatia's conservative government led by Prime Minsiter Andrej Plenkovic advocates sending military equipment to Ukraine, but its left-wing President Zoran Milanovic opposes the notion.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Monday told a media briefing there were North Korean troops in Russia.

"Today, I can confirm that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia, and that North Korean military units have been deployed to the Kursk region," Rutte told reporters. Ukrainian forces had launched launched in August a major offensive and captured territory in the southern Russian region.

The deployment of North Korean troops there represents a "significant escalation" in Pyongyang's involvement in conflict and marks "a dangerous expansion of Russia's war," Rutte added.

"The deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea is a threat to both Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security," Rutte said after NATO officials and diplomats received a briefing from a South Korean delegation.

Rutte also pointed to Russia's battlefield losses and said this was a sign of "growing desperation" on the part of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Over 600,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in Putin’s war and he is unable to sustain his assault on Ukraine without foreign support," Rutte said.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov appeared to shrug off Rutte's comments, noting a joint security pact last signed by Moscow and Pyongyang in June.

Lavrov stopped short of confirming North Korean soldiers were in Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday said he had arrived in Iceland to discuss the Russian invasion with the leaders of several Nordic states.

"This marks my first working visit to Iceland, where I will participate in the Fourth Ukraine-Nordic Summit and hold bilateral talks with its participants," Zelenskyy said in a post on X. 

Zelenskyy also said discussions would center around support for his "victory plan" to end the war on Ukraine's terms. The leaders will also address areas where "cooperation can yield maximum results," he added. 

He highlighted the financing of Ukrianian weapons production and long-range capabilities as well as training and equipment for Ukrianian forces among other talking points.

"The Nordic countries are our principled and resolute allies, and the Ukraine-Nordic Platform stands as one of our most productive multilateral formats," Zelenskyy said.

Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden have pledged billions of euros in aid to Ukraine since Russian forces invaded in February 2022.

South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Monday that the deployment of North Korean troops to battlefields in Ukraine could happen sooner than expected.

Yoon made the comments in a phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The comments also come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said North Korean troops could join the battlefield against Ukraine "in a matter of days."

"This unlawful military cooperation between Russia and North Korea fundamentally undermines the rules-based international order and poses a threat to peace on the Korean Peninsula and globally," South Korea's Yonhap news agency quoted Yoon as saying.

Yoon said Seoul was hoping to seek "practical countermeasures" with the EU and member states, and would redouble efforts to monitor and block "illegal exchanges" between Russia and North Korea.

kb/dj (AP, Reuters, AFP, dpa)