The Biden administration announced on Thursday that approximately 8,000 North Korean troops have reportedly been stationed in Russia’s Kursk region, near the Ukrainian border.
The report, shared by Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood during a U.N. Security Council session, signals a deepening military alliance between Moscow and Pyongyang.
“We just received some information, just coming in now, that right now there are some 8,000 DPRK soldiers in Kursk Oblast,” said Wood, referring to North Korea by its official acronym, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
Russia called the council meeting to discuss international peace and security.
Addressing his Russian counterpart, Wood posed a pointed, “respectful” question.
“Does Russia still maintain that there are no DPRK troops in Russia?” he said. Russia’s representative did not respond to Wood’s inquiry, leaving the chamber silent on the matter.