North Korea to send 50,000 troops to Russia, Volodymyr Zelensky says

At least 50,000 North Korean troops headed to Russia, Zelensky says. "A decision has been made for 30,000 to 50,000 North Koreans to be deployed on the territory of Russia," Zelensky announced on Sunday. He did not say where he got the estimate. There are approximately 50,000 North Korean troops waiting for deployment to Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X/Twitter on Saturday. "At first, we were talking about hundreds, then thousands, and now a decision has been made for 30,000 to 50,000 North Koreans to be deployed on the territory of Russia," he wrote. He did not elaborate how he gained the information. In July, Zelensky said that the Kremlin was seeking 30,000 additional North Korean troops for its war against Ukraine. Since 2024, Pyongyang has provided anywhere between 11,000 and 14,000 troops to assist Moscow. This month, an official at Ukraine's military intelligence told Reuters that a North Korean missile unit has begun deploying to western Russia and could be equipped with 120 ballistic missiles and six launchers for strikes against Ukraine. North Korea has supplied Russia with millions of artillery and mortar rounds, ballistic missiles, long-range artillery and multiple-launch rocket systems, according to Ukrainian and independent assessments. Zelensky also said on Saturday that troops have also found North Korean missiles in Ukrainian territory. "It is absolutely clear that North Korea will continue to build its experience in modern warfare, receive licenses from Russia, and receive all kinds of military tools from them," he wrote.