US says North Korea sending troops to Ukraine would be 'dangerous'

It would be a “dangerous and highly worrying development” if North Korea sent troops to help Russia in Ukraine, the United States said on Monday, while South Korea and Britain warned of the high price Moscow would likely have to pay to Pyongyang.

“We are consulting with our allies and partners about the implications of such a dramatic step,” U.S. Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood told the 15-member U.N. Security Council. Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine in February 2022.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Pyongyang of preparing to send 10,000 soldiers to Russia. Ukraine's U.N. Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya told the Security Council on Monday: “These troops are expected to be ready for war against Ukraine by November 1.”

VIEW | Wood speaks to the Security Council:

North Korea sends soldiers to help Russia – a “dangerous and extremely worrying development”

Speaking to the United Nations Security Council, U.S. Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood raised reports that North Korea is sending soldiers to support Russia in its war against Ukraine. While he said it was “a sign of desperation” that suggested the Kremlin was running out of manpower, he warned that such military engagement between the two countries was extremely worrying.

South Korea's spy service said last week that North Korea had sent 1,500 special forces to Russia's Far East for training and acclimatization at military bases and that they would likely be deployed to fight in Ukraine.

“If true, this represents a dangerous and extremely worrying development and an apparent deepening of military relations between the DPRK and Russia,” Wood said of the reports, using North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

“Scaremongering”

The Kremlin declined on Monday to directly answer a question about whether North Korean troops would fight in Ukraine, but spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow's cooperation with Pyongyang was not directed against third countries.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia accused Western countries of being “distracted by the scare tactics circulating with Iranian, Chinese and Korean bogeymen, each more absurd than the last.”

Britain's UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward said it was “highly likely” that North Korea would send troops.

“It seems the harder it is for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin to recruit Russians as cannon fodder, the more willing he is to rely on North Korea in his illegal war,” she said. “We can be sure that the leadership of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will demand a high price from Russia in return.”

South Korea's UN Ambassador Joonkook Hwang also warned the Council of the impact of such a move.

“North Korea will expect a generous return from Moscow in return for its troop contribution. This could be either military or financial support. It could be technology related to nuclear weapons,” he said.

North Korea has been subject to UN sanctions over its nuclear and missile programs since 2006, and those measures have been tightened over the years – with support from Russia.