NATO chief confirms "North Korean military deployment in Kursk, Russia"

NATO chief confirms dispatch of North Korean troops after briefing of South Korean delegation
Secretary-General Rutter "North Korea confirms deployment of Lusk"
a border area in which Ukrainian and Russian forces are engagedNATO "consult and closely monitor allies"

[Anchor]
North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO head officially confirmed the deployment of North Korean troops in Kursk, Russia.

The war killed or injured 600,000 Russian troops, and the dispatch was interpreted as a demonstration of President Putin's desperation.

I'll connect to the international department to find out the contents.

Reporter Kim, please pass it on.

[Reporter]
Yes, a meeting of the North Atlantic Council was held at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on the morning of the 28th local time, presided over by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutter.

The North Atlantic Council is NATO's top political decision-making body, attended by ambassadors from 32 member states.

A South Korean government delegation headed by Hong Jang-won, the first deputy chief of the National Intelligence Service, explained the trend of sending North Korean troops at the meeting.

After the South Korean government's briefing, Secretary-General Rutter met with reporters and confirmed that North Korean troops were sent to Russia and North Korean troops were deployed to the Kursk region of Russia.

Kursk, in southwestern Russia, is a border area where Ukrainian forces entered in August and engaged in fighting with Russian forces.

Secretary-General Rutter said, "The dispatch of North Korean troops means that Russia's illegal war has expanded," adding, "It not only threatens the security of the Indo-Pacific and the European Atlantic, but also undermines peace on the Korean Peninsula."

He stressed that the deployment of North Korean troops is not only a significant act of escalating tensions but also a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.

NATO urged North Korea to immediately stop the action, while pointing out that Russia is "giving aid to North Korea by circumventing military technology and international sanctions" in exchange for North Korea's dispatch of troops.

He then said that more than 600,000 Russian soldiers were killed or injured in the war started by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and interpreted that the dispatch of North Korean troops proves Putin's despair.

At the same time, NATO explained that it is actively consulting and closely monitoring the situation within the alliance and with Ukraine and its Indo-Pacific allies.

Rutter added that he spoke to Yoon Suk Yeol's president and Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov later in the day.

So far, I'm YTN Kim Jandi from the international department.