A small number of North Korean troops are already in Ukraine, with their numbers expected to rise as more North Korean forces complete training in eastern Russia and move toward the front lines, a news report has indicated.
The report by CNN on Tuesday, if confirmed, would mark a significant development in North Korea's deployment of troops to Ukraine, posing a potential security threat to Europe and the Indo-Pacific region.
There has been growing anticipation about when North Korean forces might enter Ukraine, following reports of troop movements toward the Kursk border region in western Russia.
"A good many of them are already in action," CNN reported, citing Western intelligence officials.
On Tuesday, the Pentagon stated that "a small number" of North Korean troops are in the Kursk region, with plans to utilize them in "some type of infantry role."
Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder added that several thousand more troops are "almost there or due to arrive imminently." (Yonhap)
