(Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday he had been briefed about North Korea’s involvement in the war in his country and Russia’s plans for this autumn and winter.
North Korea, a burgeoning Kremlin ally, has supplied ballistic missiles and ammunition rounds to Russia, which Moscow’s forces have used in their war in Ukraine, Kyiv says.
The Ukrainian leader gave his latest update on Russian-North Korean cooperation in a nightly address to the nation, in which he said he had met top Kyiv officials earlier to hear reports.
“Among the most important was the report of the intelligence services … on the intentions of the Russians for the autumn and winter. Everything was quite detailed. The actual involvement of North Korea in the war,” he said.
He provided no further information. It came a day after he said, also without elaborating, that North Korea had transferred personnel to the Russian armed forces.
Reuters could not independently verify the statement.
South Korea’s Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun said last week that “there was a high possibility” that North Korea could deploy troops to help Russia. The Kremlin dismissed that statement as “fake news”.
(Reporting by Yuliia Dysa, Tom Balmforth; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
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