North Korea’s U.N. envoy dismissed rumors of North Korean troops in Ukraine as groundless on Monday. The Kremlin stated that their cooperation with North Korea is not directed against anyone else, with conflicting information about North Korean troops fighting in Ukraine. South Korea and the Pentagon had conflicting statements on the matter. Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation also denied the presence of North Korean soldiers in the country. North Korea has a large military, and their potential deployment in Ukraine would be their first direct involvement in a conflict since the Korean War. Experts believe that a few thousand North Korean troops would not significantly impact the situation in Ukraine, but would serve as a political statement to strengthen ties between Moscow and Pyongyang. The language barrier between Korean and Russian-speaking soldiers would be a challenge, but they are likely to operate as separate Korean formations with communication with Russian units. The initial deployment could be a trial run, with the possibility of more troops returning if successful. Reporters from Seoul and New Delhi contributed to this information, along with Reuters and NBC News correspondents.
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