North Korea's growing involvement in Russia-Ukraine war

[Anchor]

The North Korean military is becoming increasingly involved in the Russia-Ukraine war.

There are claims that about 60 North Korean-made ballistic missiles have been used.

In response to the close ties between Russia and North Korea, the West continues to provide military support.

Paris correspondent Lee Hwa-jin reports.

[Report]

The approximately 10,000 North Korean troops concentrated in Russia's Kursk region are gradually showing signs of deeper involvement in the war.

Last month, they appeared beyond Russian territory, reaching Ukraine's Kharkiv and Mariupol, and Ukrainian media reported that North Korean troops had been killed or injured by missiles fired by Ukraine.

According to Ukrainian authorities, among the deployed North Korean troops, 2,000 are participating in combat on the front lines, while 9,000 remain as reserve forces.

North Korea's weapon support is also accelerating.

Following the release of a video claiming to have destroyed the North Korean-made anti-tank weapon 'Bulsae-4' missile system, Ukrainian authorities stated that over 60 ballistic missiles supplied by North Korea have been used on the battlefield.

[Andriy Cherniak/Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Agency spokesperson/Radio Svoboda interview: "We have information that Russia has used about 60 North Korean-made missiles against Ukraine so far."]

The United States and the West are reiterating their support for Ukraine.

The Biden administration announced military support worth 1 trillion won, including anti-personnel mines and anti-tank missiles, and the German Chancellor also visited Ukraine and promised additional military support of the same scale.

[Olaf Scholz/German Chancellor: "This is my very clear message to President Putin of Russia. We will support Ukraine in the long term, as much as necessary."]

Amid the seeming proxy war between the West and Russia, ceasefire negotiations have also entered a power struggle.

Ukraine has stated that if it joins NATO, it could abandon immediate territorial recovery and engage in ceasefire negotiations, but Russia has dismissed the ceasefire proposal, stating that Ukraine's NATO membership is absolutely unacceptable.

This is Lee Hwa-jin from KBS News in Paris.