"We are incredibly concerned by Russia's decision to turn to [North Korea] to supply soldiers to continue their brutal war against Ukraine," said Vedant Patel, the department's spokesperson.
"I can confirm that over 10,000 [North Korean] soldiers have been sent to eastern Russia, and most of them have moved to far western Kursk Oblast, where they have begun engaging in combat operations with Russian forces," he added.
North Korean soldiers have reportedly been trained "in artillery, UAVs, and basic infantry operations, including trench clearing, which are critical skills for frontline operations," he further elaborated.
But he expressed doubts about Russia's battlefield success, citing that "some of the challenges they would need to overcome include interoperability, the language barrier, command and control, and communications."
According to multiple Ukrainian sources, Russia has assembled a force of around 50,000 soldiers including North Koreans to reclaim its Kursk territory, currently occupied by Ukraine.
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