The United States has received information indicating that “currently,” there are 8,000 North Korean troops in Russia’s Kursk region, stated U.S. Deputy Ambassador to the UN, Robert Wood, during a U.N. Security Council meeting.

“With all due respect, I want to ask my Russian colleague: ‘Does Russia still maintain that there are no DPRK troops on Russian soil?'” Wood stated, referring to North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). The Russian ambassador to the 15-member Security Council did not respond.

Thousands of North Korean troops have arrived in Kursk, the western Russian province partly occupied by Ukraine, ahead of an expected counteroffensive by Moscow.

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The U.S. and NATO have confirmed the presence of North Korean soldiers in Kursk, a Russian border region where Ukrainian forces advanced in August and still occupy some areas.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in an interview published today with South Korean media, criticized the West’s lack of response to North Korean troops arriving in Russia to fight in Ukraine.

“I believe the reaction to this matter is nonexistent…” Zelensky said, adding that he was “surprised by China’s silence” regarding this military deployment.

He also mentioned that Russia is in the process of arranging for a “large number of civilians” from North Korea to work in Russian arms production factories.

Zelensky went on to say that Moscow has confirmed North Korean troop involvement in the Ukraine conflict to Kyiv’s Western allies through intelligence channels, noting that Russia is testing Western reactions and may deploy more troops if the West’s response is not strong enough.