NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte confirms the deployment of DPRK military units in Kursk region (Russia) and says that support for Ukraine will be increased.

He made the corresponding statement on Monday at NATO headquarters.

The Secretary General said that this morning the delegation of the Republic of Korea informed the North Atlantic Council and other partners in the Indo-Pacific region - Australia, Japan and New Zealand - about North Korea's growing involvement in Russia's illegal aggressive war against Ukraine. The delegation included senior representatives of the National Intelligence Service and the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Korea.

"Allies also shared their intelligence assessments. Today I can confirm that North Korean troops have been sent to Russia and that North Korean military units have been deployed to the Kursk region," Rutte said.

"The deployment of North Korean troops represents one, a significant escalation in the DPRK's ongoing involvement in Russia's illegal war. Two, yet another breach of UN Security Council resolutions. And three, a dangerous expansion of Russia's war. NATO calls on Russia and the DPRK to cease these actions immediately. The deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea is a threat to both the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security. It undermines peace on the Korean Peninsula and fuels the Russian war against Ukraine," the NATO Secretary General stressed.

"Pyongyang has already supplied Russia with millions of rounds of ammunition and ballistic missiles that are fuelling a major conflict in the heart of Europe and undermining global peace and security. In exchange, Putin is providing North Korea with military technology and other support to circumvent international sanctions. This underlines the importance of democracies standing together to uphold our values and to face our shared security challenges. But the deployment of North Korean troops to Kursk is also a sign of Putin's growing desperation," Rutte said.

"Over 600,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in Putin's war and he is unable to sustain his assault on Ukraine without foreign support. This is because the Ukrainians are fighting back with courage, resilience and ingenuity. NATO Allies will continue to support a free and democratic Ukraine because Ukraine's security is our security. Today we discussed the need to further strengthen military support to Ukraine. We are actively consulting within the Alliance, with Ukraine and with our Indo-Pacific partners on these developments. And we continue to monitor the situation closely," the NATO Secretary General stressed.

The Secretary General also reported that today he has scheduled telephone conversations with the President of the Republic of Korea and Minister of Defense of Ukraine Umerov.