While the Ukraine war has taken a backseat in American media in favor of the Presidential election, it appears a new phase of the war might be ready to begin. South Korea has announced plans to send soldiers and weaponry to Ukraine amidst growing Western reports that North Korea is jointly working with Russia in its operations in Ukraine by providing additional men.
On October 8th, South Korean defense minister Kim Yong-hyun told lawmakers that it was “highly likely” that North Korean officers were killed in an attack by Ukraine near Donetsk on the 3rd. Then on the 18th, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service stated that Russian naval ships had transferred 1,500 North Korean troops to Russia’s Pacific port city of Vladivostok between October 8th and October 13th, Al Jazeera reported.
Russia has denied these allegations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told press reporters, “This seems like yet another fake news story.”
So-called military experts have been quick to assert that Russian President Vladimir Putin has developed a new affinity with North Korean President Kim Jong Un. “We cannot rule out the possibility,” Edward Howell, a lecturer in international relations at the University of Oxford, told Al Jazeera. “We know that Russia needs manpower.”
SEE: Russia And North Korea Sign Historic Pact To Provide Mutual Military Aid In Case Of Conflict, Strengthens Economic Relations – The WinePress printed the entire pact in detail, something Western media has not provided.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been adamant that North Korean men are now beginning to aid Russia in some of these most recent attacks, echoing Western reports and stating North Korea was a de-facto participant in the conflict.
In a Sunday message to Ukrainians, Zelensky made mention of this “new threat” to Ukraine, claiming there is “clear evidence” that North Korean soldiers are actively aiding Russia. Zelensky called for more Western support. He stated:
Similarly, there is now a new threat – the criminal alliance between Russia and North Korea. I am grateful to the leaders and representatives of nations who are not turning a blind eye and are speaking openly about this cooperation aimed at increasing the scale of the war. About the weapons being supplied from North Korea to Russia. About what Russia might give Pyongyang in return for this assistance.
Unfortunately, the instability and threats could grow significantly once North Korea starts learning the peculiarities of modern warfare. Now we have clear evidence that people are being supplied to Russia from North Korea, and these are not just workers for industries, but also military personnel.
And we expect a normal, honest, strong reaction from our partners to this. In fact, this is another state joining the war against Ukraine. Everyone has the opportunity to see the evidence – both through satellites and through the video that is already coming from Russia.
This must be addressed. There must be a response. We must counter this. We cannot let evil grow.
If the world remains silent now, and if we end up facing North Korean soldiers on the front lines as regularly as we are defending against “Shaheds,” it will benefit no one in the world and will only prolong this war. A war that must be ended justly and as soon as possible.
Separately, Zelensky claimed North Korea is aiding because Russia because “I think it’s because of the money,” he said, adding: “I think North Korea is very poor, so they will send their people to the front,” the Kyiv Independent reported.
In another speech on Monday, Zelensky claimed Putin does not seek peace but wants continued war.
We need decisive actions from our partners, especially in light of reports about North Korea’s new role in supporting Russia. It is obvious that Putin fears peace, which is why he is looking for ways to escalate the aggression and involve North Korea on the frontline. This is an obvious signal to the whole world as to who wants nothing but war.
On the same day yesterday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin made a surprise visit to Kyiv and announced another new defense aid package to Zelensky valued at $400 million.
After attempting to extend yet another olive branch for peace with Ukraine, it appears Putin and Russia have withdrawn their recent calls for a truce, perhaps indefinitely. On October 4th, after an incursion on the Kursk region of Ukraine, dealing a purported “humiliating” blow to Russia, The Moscow Times reported, citing an independent Russian Substack page, Poyasnitelnaya Zapiska, drawing quotes from sources close to the Kremlin – information that is totally opposite from what the Kremlin and Russian officials have been saying for the duration of the war.
The Kremlin has come to a corresponding conclusion that they will destroy Ukrainian statehood. The situation looks like it will end up in no-rules warfare and both sides are considering how to make things harder for the other.
The publication reported, citing one of its sources as saying.
Another official who regularly meets with Putin claimed the idea of peace talks would be “completely” off the table for the foreseeable future if the West permits Ukraine to fire missiles deep inside Russia. The head of a large state-owned enterprise, who is supposedly in regular contact with Putin, claims, “It’s all gone too far. I don’t believe there will be any sort of peace process. Nothing will stop until Ukraine collapses.”
Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR), told the War Zone that they expect North Korean troops to arrive in Kursk Oblast tomorrow, October 23rd. “We are waiting for the first units tomorrow in the Kursk direction. We will see after a couple of days.” He did not clarify how many men they thought would arrive.
In response to these purported moves by North Korea, South Korean state media Yonhap has confirmed that they plan to send their own troops and weapons to Ukraine, vowing to take “phased measures.”
South Korea’s National Security Council (NSC) claims the North is sending around 12,000 troops to aid Russia, with roughly 1,500 soldiers already deployed to Russia’s Far East. They claim the troops already in Russia are stationed in Vladivostok, Ussuriysk, Khabarovsk, and Blagoveshchensk.
Yonhap quoted an anonymous intelligence source who said, “There is a possibility that personnel will be sent to Ukraine to monitor the tactics and combat capabilities of North Korean special forces dispatched in support of Russia,” the source said.
‘The government is also considering weapons support for Ukraine in a possible shift from its policy of not directly providing lethal aid,’ the Korean outlet noted.
Deputy national security adviser Kim Tae-hyo said in a briefing that this poses a “significant security threat” to both South Korea and the international community, calling it a “blatant violation” of U.N. Security Council resolutions which prohibit military cooperation with North Korea.
The government calls for the immediate withdrawal of North Korean troops. If the illegal military cooperation between North Korea and Russia continues, [we] will not stand by but respond firmly in collaboration with the international community,”
Kim explained, warning of “phased measures” in response to North Korea
Defense ministry spokesperson Jeon Ha-kyou said he believes Russia may be providing financial assistance or advanced technologies to North Korea in return for aiding them.
Yonhap also referred to a Russian Telegram account that posted a photo of Russian and North Korean flags side by side on a Ukrainian battlefield over a mine in Pokrovsk.
Furthermore, a satellite image disclosed by South Korea’s intelligence appears to show the movement of North Korean troops into the Russian city of Vladivostok. “The unattributed photo was taken by a satellite that we’ve been operating,” the National Intelligence Service (NIS). The image was reportedly captured on Friday, October 18th.
A South Korean government official claimed in September that the North “dispatched fighter pilots to Vladivostok […] ahead of the first deployment of its ground troops on October 8.”
Park Won-gon, a professor at Ewha Womans University and an expert on North Korean affairs, told The Korea Times the ramifications of this new development and how it may further escalate South Korea’s involvement.
The presidential office drew a red line in June, saying that when Russia provides North Korea with advanced military technology and weapons, it would consider providing lethal weapons to Ukraine. If Russia provides North Korea with advanced military technology, those weapons obviously pose a real, existential threat to South Korea. That’s what the red line is about.
While it’s a complicated issue as to whether the dispatch of North Korean troops itself crosses the red line, the transfer of key technologies has not yet been confirmed.
If it’s confirmed that North Korea has actually received such technologies, then that would definitely be crossing the red line. However, as of now, even U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin hasn’t made a clear statement on the troop dispatch
Prof. Won-gon said
Hong Min, senior fellow researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, emphasized the need for precaution and a careful response.
“If South Korea takes preemptive retaliatory measures, such as providing lethal weapons to Ukraine, in response to the strengthening of the North Korea-Russia military alliance, the inter-Korean confrontation will only become more intensified. This could also justify the North Korea-Russia military alliance,” Hong said.
He added: “If Seoul uses that support as a rationale for retaliatory actions, it may provoke substantial backlash and confrontation. Hence, a cautious response is crucial.
“Thus, we should instead condemn and impose sanctions on the North Korean deployments in the name of the international community and work together. If South Korea actively supports Ukraine independently as a form of retaliation against Pyongyang, North Korea could use South Korea’s actions to justify its own behavior and become more overtly aligned with Russia.”
South Korea’s actions may also trigger an additional response from the E.U. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told Politico over the weekend that Europe needs to reconsider French President Emmanuel Macron’s calls to send troops to Ukraine.
“If information about Russia’s killing squads being equipped with North Korean ammunition and military personnel is confirmed, we have to get back to ‘boots on the ground’ and other ideas proposed by Macron,” Landsbergis said.
As noted by the War Zone, ‘South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol spoke with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Monday. Rutte urged Seoul to send a delegation to NATO “to share data and suggested boosting cooperation in the defense industry and security dialogue among South Korea, Ukraine and NATO to respond if the North sends more soldiers to Russia.”’
Yoon said: “We hope that the procedure for joining NATO’s Battlefield Information Collection and Exploitation Systems (BICES) is quickly finalized so that we can communicate with NATO in real-time and share data safely and effectively. The NATO chief responded by saying he would strive to ensure swift progress.”
In a statement on X, Rutte said, “North Korea sending troops to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine would mark a significant escalation.”
AUTHOR COMMENTARY
I do not believe the timing of this is an accident, considering the highly anticipated BRICS summit is currently underway and we are roughly two weeks out from the U.S. Presidential election.
Where’s the truth in all of this? I have no idea; and I think it would be prudent not to trust anything we are told from any side at face value. The first casualty of war is the truth.
Therefore, whatever the truth or lies, the war in Ukraine appears ready to vastly expand, which may result in NATO and the U.S. “officially” sending ground troops there. Either way, I think we already knew this war was going to escalate much more by year’s end, or by Spring season in 2025; and at the very least get ready to see much more defensive offensive weapons packages delivered to Ukraine, as the war racketeers and defense contractors rake in windfall profits.
Be ready for a false flag operation to ignite a massive military response…
Mark 13:7 And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet. [8] For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
[7] Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? [8] Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? [9] For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? [10] Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. (1 Corinthians 9:7-10).
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War is God’s judgement on sin in this life and Hell is God’s judgement on sin in the life hereafter.
Satan is the god of this world, it’s his war, human sacrifices to him.
Interesting point, Ed. However don’t forget that God is causing this war to punish the wicked.
In April of 2020 Satan came to me on an empty street and asked me to serve him. I said no.
He told me that if I would not serve him that he would start a Great War and kill millions. I told him to do what he wants but I will not serve you.
Her we are his war as promised.
I have seen a lot of Ukraine combat videos. I think N Korea solders are not in combat but clean up work, duties like retrieving dead bodies etc.
Just the separation alone of North and South is RIDICULOUSLY funny. It’s still one country, anyone who thinks otherwise is madder than a wet hen lol
I say china is not pleased with North Korea sending troops to fight for Russia. China will soon invade North Korea.