US says N Korean troops ready for Ukraine combat

.Blinken says 8,000 of 10,000 North Korean troops believed to be in Russia have made their way to the Kursk border

WASHINGTON:

The United States said Thursday that up to 8,000 North Korean troops have reached Russia's border region with Ukraine ready for combat, after Pyongyang's firing of a long-range missile ramped up tensions days before the US election.

Seeking advantage in his grinding invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has brought in troops from North Korea, the first time Russia has invited foreign forces on its soil in more than a century.

Citing US intelligence, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that some 8,000 of the 10,000 North Korean troops believed to be in Russia have made their way to the Kursk border region.

"We've not yet seen these troops deploy into combat against Ukrainian forces, but we would expect that to happen in the coming days," Blinken told a news conference after four-way talks with the South Korean foreign and defense ministers.

Russia has been training North Korean troops in artillery, drones, basic artillery operations and trench clearing, "indicating that they fully intend to use these forces in frontline operations," Blinken said.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that North Korean troops were being supplied with Russian uniforms.