The US and South Korea have urged North Korea to withdraw its troops from Russia. Meanwhile a Russian guided bomb hit a high-rise building in Kharkiv, killing two, including a child, local officials say.
The US and South Korea have urged North Korea to withdraw its troops from Russia.
Washington claims that around 10,000 North Korean troops have been deployed in Russia, ready for action against Ukrainian forces as Moscow pursues its full-scale invasion of its neighbor.
Moscow and Pyongyang have deepened their alliance as the Ukraine war has dragged on, but sending North Korean troops to fight against Kyiv’s forces would represent a significant escalation that has sparked concern in the West.
“I call upon them to withdraw their troops out of Russia,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said, echoing a call by his South Korean counterpart Kim Yong-hyun, who stood alongside him as he addressed reporters.
Austin said the US will “continue to work with allies and partners to discourage Russia from employing these troops in combat.”
Nevertheless, there is a “good likelihood” that Moscow will still do just that, according to Austin.
South Korea’s Kim said that Seoul’s longstanding policy that it will not provide weapons to Ukraine remains in place, despite calls from Washington and Kyiv to reconsider.
The Kremlin’s UN envoy Vassily Nebenzia said any claims that Pyongyang’s forces were present on the front lines were “mere assertions.”
