S. Korea set to brief NATO on N. Korean troops in Russia

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is set to receive a briefing from senior South Korean officials on Monday regarding North Korean troops in Russia, according to NATO's website, with indications that these troops may soon be prepared for deployment against Ukrainian forces.

A South Korean delegation visiting Brussels will brief the NATO council on the North's troop deployment, joined by ambassadors from NATO's Indo-Pacific partners -- Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea -- as noted on NATO's website. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is expected to deliver a media statement following the briefing.

The South Korean delegation, which includes high-level intelligence, defense, and foreign officials, is at NATO headquarters for this rare briefing after both South Korea and the United States confirmed North Korea's dispatch of some 3,000 troops to eastern Russia for possible deployment in the Ukraine war.

Ukraine has reported that these troops have begun moving toward the Kursk border region in western Russia, where Ukrainian forces launched an incursion in August.

The delegation, led by First Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service Hong Jang-won, is expected to share its assessments with NATO regarding the North's troop deployment and related activities.

They may also discuss potential support measures for Ukraine, including sending a South Korean intelligence team to Kyiv to monitor North Korean troop activities.

The discussions may address South Korea's options for assistance to Ukraine, potentially including a policy shift toward providing weapons, a change from Seoul's current stance of offering only nonlethal aid. (Yonhap)