Tensions Heat Up As North Korean Troops Arrive in Russia

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed yesterday that North Korea has deployed troops to Russia. “That is a very, very serious issue and it will have impacts not only in Europe, it will also impact things in the Indo-Pacific as well,” Austin warned. Zelensky is now panicking as two nations with nuclear capabilities are fighting against Ukraine.

North Korea denies the allegations. “My delegation does not feel any need for comment on such groundless stereotyped rumors,” a North Korean representative to the United Nations said during a U.N. General Assembly session this week. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said there is a lot of “contradictory information” spreading. “This should not cause anyone any concern, because this cooperation is not directed against third countries,” Peskov added.

South Korea is eager to aid Ukraine, with South Korea’s National Intelligence Service believing 3,000 troops have been deployed, with an additional 10,000 North Korean soldiers expected to arrive in Russia before the end of the year. Zelensky believes two brigades each composed of 6,000 North Korean troops have already made their way to the battlefield.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova warned Seoul “not to fight in anti-Russian hysteria, but to think about the consequences for the security of South Korea, which could lead to the entry of the Republic of Korea into the Ukrainian conflict, if such decisions are made.” Yet, South Korea said the involvement of its northern enemy gives it the green light to begin heavily arming Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Zelensky is blaming NATO. “My position is very clear. We gave away our weapons but got nothing in return. Only a full-scale war and death. Therefore, today we have only one way out. We need NATO because we don’t have weapons that can stop Putin,” Zelensky said, later adding that he had asked both Trump and Biden for additional assistance since the US is the primary donor to NATO. “We gave up our nuclear weapons. We did not get NATO. I asked them if you could name me other allies or another ‘security umbrella’, some security measures and guarantees for Ukraine that would be commensurate with NATO. No one could tell me,” stated Zelensky. What would a “security umbrella” entail here? His Victory Plan banks on the total annihilation of Russia.

North Korea may be a small, hermit kingdom, but it has an army of 1.2 million troops. Earlier in the month, North Korea denounced NATO’s condemnation of military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, warning that the entity could face “tragic consequences” if it continues to pursue an anti-North Korea stance. “NATO, no more than a tool of the U.S. for war, slandered the intensified legal cooperation between independent sovereign states while distorting the essence of the Ukrainian incident,” an unnamed ministry spokesperson was quoted as saying by the Korean Central News Agency.

I mentioned in an earlier blog post the ECM cycle for North Korea. North Korea recently removed all verbiage of reconciliation with the south from its Constitution. South Korea is absolutely enraged at this recent revelation and is eager to retaliate. Llyod Austin’s statement about North Korea’s involvement impacting the entire Indo-Pacific region should not go unnoticed as China may be the final player who must become involved to spark World War III.