Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's comments were Washington’s first confirmation of a major development over which South Korea and Ukraine have recently sounded the alarm.
North Korea has sent troops to Russia, the United States said Wednesday, its first public confirmation of a move that has rattled Western allies and could mark a major escalation of Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“There is evidence of DPRK troops in Russia,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters in Rome, using the abbreviation for North Korea’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
"What exactly they're doing is left to be seen," Austin said, adding, "We're trying to gain better fidelity on it." It's a "serious issue," he said, if North Korea's "intention is to participate in this war on Russia's behalf."
His comments came after South Korea and Ukraine sounded the alarm in recent days, sharing intelligence and voicing dissatisfaction with what they see as a lack of urgency in the response from the U.S. and other Western countries.
Remember, if "the west" so much as sends letters of warm regard, let alone troops, to Ukraine, Russia will feel like that's justification for starting WW III. They can naturally do whatever they want, because Russia.
Maybe, but there is very little chance of Putin launching nukes. Firstly because they likely haven't been serviced and many probably won't work, secondly because dictators tend to want legacies and Putin has children and grandchildren.
Huh? "the west" has been sending tons of weapons, ammo, & equipment to help Ukraine the whole time. I think that counts as sending more than just "letters of warm regard"
That's because that's what's allowable by international standards and agreements. We're "selling" it to those countries as a part of our trade and military agreements.
Sending troops, where feet touch the ground on foreign soil during wartime? That's a whole different ballgame. That's how World Wars get started.
I wonder how the tankies will try to spin this. Putin is as far from communist as a person can get. Surely the tankies won't continue to claim that NK is even remotely socialist.
The western reaction is calm, considering, slightly curious and not urgent. The quotes show a lack of importance. It might as well be business as usual instead of a harbinger of wider war.
Disasters like this often have the same kind initial reactions in history
No no you don't get it ww3 is when 2 third world country with outdaded equipment and fucked up economy try to fight against the entire west, definitely ww3 /s
Is this something for which there's actual evidence, or is it another Iraq WMD situation, where we're kind of just expected to take all of the assertions as gospel?
It's not as if they won't lie to us in order to manufacture buy-in from the public in order to send US troops.
Are you familiar with US history, and the number of times its people have been lied to in order to support war? Just off the top of my head: Gulf of Tonkin, the WMD's, the Iran coup, the USS Maine, and I definitely remember the time when we treated Saddam Hussein the same way we're treating Zelensky now back in 1983.
So I'm asking again, has anyone provided actual evidence, publicly, that this has even occurred, or am I just supposed to take these assertions as fact?