North Korea calls reports of more troops for Russia ‘invented’ by Kyiv

On Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister, Kim Yo-jong, dismissed claims that her country would dispatch additional troops to fight in Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine as "groundless" and a "farce." Kim addressed the claims in a statement published by the state-run Korean Central News Agency, explaining her stance on major international affairs.

The Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, had recently alleged that Russia was seeking North Korea's contribution of between 30,000 to 50,000 soldiers to combat Ukraine. Kim vehemently defended Russia and criticized the United States, asserting that the US and the West's threat to Russian security was the primary catalyst behind the current Ukrainian crisis.

Kim emphasized that the treaty between North Korea and Russia, which they refer to as a "comprehensive strategic partnership," falls within the "legal domain of the exercise of sovereign rights." She reiterated that North Korea remains "boundlessly faithful" to its obligations as a contracting party to the inter-state treaty, reaffirming its allied nature.

In response to Japan's "reweaponization," Kim acknowledged that her military leadership had begun to consider this development as part of its military strategy to deter and contain the evolving security challenge posed by Japan. Kim warned that if Japan were to make a "wrong choice," it would face an "immediate annihilating blow" that would be "impossible to survive."