North Korea has sent troops to Russia, the United States said Wednesday, its first public confirmation of a move that has rattled Western allies and could mark a major escalation of Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
“There is evidence of DPRK troops in Russia,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters in Rome, using the abbreviation for North Korea’s formal name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“What exactly they’re doing is left to be seen,” Austin said, adding, “We’re trying to gain better fidelity on it.” It’s a “serious issue,” he said, if North Korea’s “intention is to participate in this war on Russia’s behalf.”
His comments came after South Korea and Ukraine sounded the alarm in recent days, sharing intelligence and voicing dissatisfaction with what they see as a lack of urgency in the response from the U.S. and other Western countries.
Remember, if “the west” so much as sends letters of warm regard, let alone troops, to Ukraine, Russia will feel like that’s justification for starting WW III. They can naturally do whatever they want, because Russia.
Typical conservative values.
Maybe, but there is very little chance of Putin launching nukes. Firstly because they likely haven’t been serviced and many probably won’t work, secondly because dictators tend to want legacies and Putin has children and grandchildren.
He don’t care about his children or grandchildren, but what he do care about is his own life, so he won’t be launching any nukes.
What makes you think he doesn’t care about his legacy?
Hmm fair point, IIRC he does have some son in politics quite high up.
Really, you don’t have to love your son to want him to replace you. It’s more about being You 2.0 than being someone you love. I doubt either of the successive Kims got much love from their fathers.
Huh? “the west” has been sending tons of weapons, ammo, & equipment to help Ukraine the whole time. I think that counts as sending more than just “letters of warm regard”
That’s because that’s what’s allowable by international standards and agreements. We’re “selling” it to those countries as a part of our trade and military agreements.
Sending troops, where feet touch the ground on foreign soil during wartime? That’s a whole different ballgame. That’s how World Wars get started.
You’re right. Next time, let’s cut the middle man and send the missiles to Moscow directly.
Glad we are in agreement.
And the whole time Russia has been saying it’s a dangerous escalation, and that sending weapons to Ukraine is tantamount to participating in the war.
And Trump would appease the invaders. Shame.
Or in his verbiage:
“SAD.”
I wonder how the tankies will try to spin this. Putin is as far from communist as a person can get. Surely the tankies won’t continue to claim that NK is even remotely socialist.
I interact with enough tankies to tell you in advance.
In the view of tankies, Russia isn’t imperialist due to some weaseling with how they define imperialism in economic terms.
The US, on the other hand, is as imperialist in tankies’ minds as it is in reality.
Thus, to to them, Russia is waging an anti-imperialist war with the long-term goal of establishing a “multi-polar” world.
Thus, the tankie conclusion is that NK is heroically sending in the soldiers to help fight imperialism.
I see no need to try and explain why this is wrong. That’s left as an exercise for the reader.
Let’s confirm it again next week, too.
The western reaction is calm, considering, slightly curious and not urgent. The quotes show a lack of importance. It might as well be business as usual instead of a harbinger of wider war.
Disasters like this often have the same kind initial reactions in history
South korea is sending equipament and troops
The malnourished, 1 ft shorter than their S. Korean counterpart troops?
ww3 has stared
Lol, no.
No no you don’t get it ww3 is when 2 third world country with outdaded equipment and fucked up economy try to fight against the entire west, definitely ww3 /s
Is this something for which there’s actual evidence, or is it another Iraq WMD situation, where we’re kind of just expected to take all of the assertions as gospel?
And has anyone considered that it’s not North Koreans fighting in Ukraine, but extraterrestrials disguised as North Koreans?
It could simply be hamsters in korean uniforms…
You raise a fair point. i hadn’t considered that.
Or it could be absolutely nothing, as has occurred in US war-making, quite recently too. It’s historical precedent in US foreign policy to just lie about things occurring in order to drum up support for war. Both Bush’s did it. Remember the Nayirah testimony?
Are you familiar with US history, and the number of times its people have been lied to in order to support war? Just off the top of my head: Gulf of Tonkin, the WMD’s, the Iran coup, the USS Maine, and I definitely remember the time when we treated Saddam Hussein the same way we’re treating Zelensky now back in 1983.
So I’m asking again, has anyone provided actual evidence, publicly, that this has even occurred, or am I just supposed to take these assertions as fact?
Asking for confirmation is perfectly fine.
Suggesting this is like Iraq WMDs and that the US is so desperate to escalate things in Ukraine that they would fake a North Korean invasion of a European country… despite recently going out of their way to ban all partners from allowing Ukraine to even use long range weapons in Russia out of fear of escalation… is where i begin to question your thought process.
My thought process is pretty simple.
When we get to a point where we can view conflicts where the US has purposefully inserted themselves with a few years of hindsight or more, more often than not, we find out the public were deliberately misled about the reasons for US involvement.
It would be one thing if it were a once-in-a-century aberration, but it’s certainly not. Our history is replete with lies about our involvement in war, so whenever I hear these bold claims from our government, it’s from a perspective of sobriety and skepticism rather than war fever.
I’d like to see some tangible proof.
