NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Monday that deployment of North Korean troops in Russia Supporting Moscow’s war effort in Ukraine was a sign of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “growing desperation.”

“Today I can confirm that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and North Korean military units have been deployed to the Kursk region,” Rutte told reporters at a news conference in Brussels.

The move marks “a significant escalation” in North Korea’s involvement in the conflict and represents “a dangerous expansion of Russia’s war,” Rutte said.

Rutte said NATO was “actively consulting within the alliance, with Ukraine and with our Indo-Pacific partners” on developments. He said he was expected to meet with the South Korean president and Ukraine’s defense minister soon.

“Deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to both Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security,” Rutte said.

The addition of thousands of North Korean troops to Europe’s largest conflict since World War II will increase pressure on Ukraine’s tired and overstretched military and inflame geopolitical tensions on the Korean Peninsula and the Indo-Indo region. peaceful in the broad sense, including in Japan and Australia, according to Western officials. say.

Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to reshape global power dynamics. He sought to create a counterbalance to Western influence with a summit of BRICS countries, including the leaders of China and India, in Russia last week.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, citing intelligence reports, said last Friday that North Korean troops would be on the battlefield within days. He previously said his government had information that some 10,000 North Korean troops were prepared to join Russian forces fighting against his country.

Days before Zelensky spoke, U.S. and South Korean officials said there was evidence that North Korea had sent troops to Russia. The United States said about 3,000 North Korean troops had been deployed to Russia for training.

contributed to this report.