US says evidence shows North Korea has troops in Russia, possibly for Ukraine war

• The United States said for the first time on Wednesday that it had seen evidence that North Korea has sent 3,000 troops to Russia for possible deployment in Ukraine, a move that could mark a significant escalation in Russia's war against its neighbour.
• U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, speaking in Rome, said it would be "very, very serious" if the North Koreans were preparing to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine, as Kyiv has alleged. He also said it remained to be seen what they would be doing there.
• The U.S. determined the North Korean soldiers were transported by ship in early-to-mid October from North Korea's Wonsan region to the eastern Russian city of Vladivostok before being taken to three military training sites in eastern Russia, said Kirby.
• In Seoul, South Korean lawmakers said that Pyongyang had promised to provide a total of about 10,000 troops, whose deployment was expected to be completed by December, the lawmakers told reporters after being briefed by South Korea's national intelligence agency. The United States said the alleged North Korean deployment could be further evidence that the Russian military was having problems with manpower.
• The Kremlin has previously dismissed Seoul's claims about the North's troop deployment as "fake news" and a North Korean representative to the United Nations in New York called it "groundless rumours" at a meeting on Monday. Moscow and Pyongyang have also denied weapons transfers, but they pledged to boost military ties and signed a mutual defence treaty at a summit in June.

(Source: Reuters)