US weapons can be fired at North Korean soldiers in Ukraine

Pentagon confirms troops from the Communist state would be seen as ‘co-belligerents’ in Russia’s war

Ukraine will be allowed to fire US-donated weapons at North Korean troops fighting alongside Russia, the Pentagon has confirmed.
Troops from the Communist, hermit state would be seen as “co-belligerents” in Russia’s war on Ukraine, the Pentagon said.
Sabrina Singh,  the spokeswoman, confirmed intelligence reports that a portion of some 10,000 North Korean soldiers sent for training in Russia have been deployed closer to the front lines.
She told reporters on Monday: “We are increasingly concerned that Russia intends to use these soldiers in combat or to support combat operations against Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk Oblast near the border with Ukraine.”
Asked whether Ukraine would be restricted from using US weapons against the arriving North Korean forces, she added: “If they are in combat, they’re fighting the Ukrainians, who are fighting for their sovereign territory. And we’ve made a commitment to Ukraine that we’re going to continue to support them with whatever it takes.”
The US has lifted restrictions on many of its weapons, allowing Kyiv’s men to fire them into Russian soil.
However, Washington is maintaining limits on the use of long-range Atacms missiles. It has also played a role in preventing British Storm Shadow missiles from being used in cross-border raids.
The US had previously estimated only 3,000 North Koreans had been sent to fight alongside Russian forces.
Joe Biden said their deployment was “very dangerous” on Monday as he cast an early vote in the presidential election in Delaware.
Ukrainian military intelligence said last week that they had been dispatched to the Russian border region of Kursk, where Kyiv’s forces currently occupy a small chunk of territory.
The Pentagon refused to confirm whether Kursk was the destination it had witnessed the movement of North Korean troops in.
Earlier, Mark Rutte, Nato’s secretary-general, appeared to confirm their deployment in the frontier region.
After meeting a representative from South Korea’s intelligence service, he said: “I can confirm that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and that North Korean military units have been deployed to the Kursk region.”
Andrii Sybiha, the Ukrainian foreign minister, said Kyiv had been warning about the deployment for weeks, and accused allies of failing to deliver a strong response.
“The bottom line: listen to Ukraine. The solution: lift restrictions on our long-range strikes against Russia now,” he wrote on social media.