USA warns North Korea against sending "cannon fodder"
At a meeting in North Korea, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un are reportedly reviving their dangerous partnership. This includes pledging to support each other militarily if necessary. South Korea expects North Korea to send a large military engineering unit to Ukraine soon to help with "rebuilding infrastructure" in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Donetsk. The US has reacted to the report and warned North Korea, which is alleged to have already provided Russia with massive weapons support.
According to a report by the South Korean TV broadcaster Chosun, North Korea is expected to send a large military engineering unit to Ukraine within the next month to help with the "rebuilding of infrastructure" in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Donetsk. The US has responded to the report and warned North Korea against sending soldiers as "cannon fodder" to an illegal war in Ukraine.
Pat Ryder, spokesperson for the US Department of Defense, recently stated at a press conference that such a deployment of soldiers should be "kept an eye on." If he were responsible for the personnel management of the North Korean military, he would question the decision to send troops as cannon fodder to fight in an illegal war in Ukraine, Ryder said.
The US think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that there are currently no reports indicating that North Korean military personnel plan to participate in combat in Ukraine. However, direct military support from North Korea could potentially free up combat power for Russian forces for operations along the front lines.
ISW: Russia planning new world order
Russia and North Korea signed a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement about a week ago, which includes mutual support in wartime. According to ISW, Russia apparently wants to forge a coalition of friendly states with good relations to the Soviet Union to create the foundation for a new world order.
Satellite images from the autumn of the previous year showed that North Korea had provided Russia with large ammunition supplies. Moscow had vehemently denied this. However, Ukrainian forces have later repeatedly found ammunition from North Korea on the battlefield.
The escalating partnership between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as reportedly revived in North Korea, is of particular concern given their pledge to support each other militarily if necessary. In light of this, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has raised concerns about Russia's plan to forge a coalition of friendly states with good relations to the Soviet Union, suggesting potential intentions for a new world order.
