“Largely speaking, so far, we’ve not seen the DPRK engaging in offensive combat operations, although we do expect at a certain point in time that that will very likely happen,” Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said during a press briefing on Monday.
He noted that the US is aware of recent reports of North Korean soldiers being killed as a result of Ukrainian strikes against Russian facilities, but did not confirm the accuracy of such claims.
However, the Pentagon’s position appears to contradict other statements coming out of Washington about North Korean troops’ involvement in active combat in Russia’s Kursk region bordering Ukraine.
“We have already seen North Korea and Russia escalate the war against Ukraine by introducing North Korean forces into Kursk, where they have engaged in direct combat operations against Ukrainian forces,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said during a press briefing on Monday.
Miller said the US does not have information regarding Ukrainian claims about casualties or the destruction of a North Korean armored vehicle, but reiterated Washington’s previously stated position that any DPRK soldier who enters the battlefield is “a legitimate target.”
The State Department similarly confirmed on Nov. 12 that North Korean soldiers had begun engaging in combat operations in Kursk after receiving special training for frontline operations, and a day later Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeated the claims.
“We see now the introduction of North Korean forces into the fight,” Blinken said, adding that the deployment allowed DPRK troops to get real combat experience while “adding fuel to the fire for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.”
Washington’s mixed statements on casualties come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with Japan’s Kyodo News agency on Sunday that DPRK troops deployed to western Russia have been killed in combat against Ukrainian forces.
He did not provide details about how many North Korean troops have been killed or wounded, simply stating that Ukraine needs “proof” before revealing the number of casualties.
The Ukrainian leader previously stated in early November that North Korean forces had suffered “losses” in combat against Ukraine’s military, reversing his earlier denial of media reports of DPRK casualties.
In Sunday’s interview, Zelensky said about 12,000 DPRK soldiers have been deployed so far to Kursk, and that many more will be sent to the front lines in the future as “cannon fodder” for Vladimir Putin’s invasion.
Despite his claims that North Korean soldiers are simply being used to reduce Russian casualties, the Ukrainian president said Russia has been treating the troops well in order to attract additional deployments.
Zelensky also emphasized that North Korea’s support for Russia’s war efforts poses dangers to Asia, stating that DPRK soldiers will acquire knowledge of modern warfare in actual combat conditions, including the use of drones and other advanced military technologies.
MNA/