In the past few days, North Korean troops have taken part in combat operations for the first time in Russia's Kursk region, Reuters reported, citing two US officials, BTA reported.
One of them, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that they took part in combat operations on November 4. Officials did not say whether any North Korean citizens were injured and did not provide further details on the case.
Yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the first fighting between Ukrainian and North Korean troops "opens a new page in instability in the world", after Defense Minister Rustem Umerov earlier reported that there had been "small-scale clashes".
Umerov confirmed in an interview with South Korean television about the first armed clash with North Korean troops, which is an apparent escalation of the conflict that began when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Earlier this week, the Pentagon said that there were at least 10,000 North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region, stressing that there are up to 12,000 North Korean servicemen in total in Russia, Reuters notes.