Pentagon believes North Korean troops have already arrived on the Ukrainian front

North Korean troops are reportedly already on the frontline in Ukraine. The Pentagon confirmed this week that it has intelligence to support this claim. The department headed by Lloyd Austin already confirmed weeks ago the allegations made by South Korean intelligence about the arrival of North Korean soldiers in Russia.

These troops, which began in eastern Russia, are moving west. According to the Pentagon, a "small number" of troops are currently in the Kursk region.

Kursk is currently the scene of fighting between Ukraine and Russia, after Kiev opened a new front against Russia there to reduce Moscow's pressure in other regions of Ukraine.

According to the Department of Defense (DOD), there are "indications that a small number are already in the Kursk oblast, with a couple thousand more that are almost there or will arrive imminently."

The total number of military personnel that Kim Jong-un's regime reportedly sent to Russia is over 10,000, according to the intelligence services of the United States and its South Korean allies.

This deployment was harshly criticized by the West and by Seoul, which consider the aid provided by North Korea as a step further in the globalization of the conflict in Ukraine, as well as a flight forward for Putin's regime, which after more than two years of war is on the ropes due to the severe attrition it has provoked in Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that according to his country's intelligence services, the number of North Korean soldiers on Russian soil could "soon" increase even more. The White House called the deployment "very dangerous."

Meeting of defense officials in Washington, DC

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held a meeting with his South Korean counterpart Kim Yong-hyun on Wednesday in Washington, D.C. After the meeting, Austin assured that it is very likely that these North Korean troops, outfitted with Russian equipment, will end up fighting in Ukraine.

"They are doing this because [Russian President Vladimir] Putin has lost a lot of troops," Austin said, adding that Moscow has to choose between mobilizing more of its own forces or asking others for help. "It does have the potential of lengthening the conflict or broadening the conflict," he added.

"Whether or not they will be employed in the fight remains to be seen, but certainly if they are employed, that is very concerning, so we remain concerned that they are going to use these troops in combat," Austin maintained.

Asked when North Korean soldiers might enter the fight against Ukrainian forces in Kursk, Austin said he would "not speculate" on the timing: "It's something we're going to continue to monitor, and we're going to continue to work with allies and partners to dissuade Russia from employing these troops in combat," he concluded.

"I call on them to withdraw their troops out of Russia."Lloyd Austin

At the same joint press conference, Lloyd Austin called on North Korea and Moscow to withdraw the North Korean regime's troops from Russian soil and not to deploy to the Ukrainian front.

"I call on them to withdraw their troops out of Russia," Austin said. Alongside him, Kim Yong-hyun also urged the "immediate withdrawal" of Pyongyang's forces.