Headline: Ukraine President: North Korea Ready to Send More Troops, Europe Can’t Match Their Scale
Article:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed confidence that North Korea could deploy additional troops to fight against Ukraine, possibly in the range of 30,000 to 500,000 soldiers. In an interview with American podcast host Lex Friedman, President Zelensky stated that North Korea, having received orders from their leadership, could mobilize a vast number of soldiers. "They can bring many people," he noted.
President Zelensky contrasted this with Europe’s capacity to mobilize troops. "Europe could formulate an army of 2-3 million people? No, they don’t want to do that. We don’t want to start a world war," he said, emphasizing the collective desire to halt Russian aggression.
The president also confirmed that North Korea sent around 12,000 soldiers to fight in Ukraine, with approximately 3,800 killed or wounded so far. Additionally, he mentioned European support, with around one million 155mm artillery shells delivered to Ukraine last year, while North Korea provided Russia with 3.7 million shells, indicating a potential shortage in Russian ammunition supplies.
Despite initial promises, Europe ended up delivering only half of the one million shells pledged by spring 2024 due to production issues. However, by November, they had nearly fulfilled their commitment, delivering 700,000 shells to Ukraine.
In a separate note, President Zelensky has previously addressed the atrocities committed by Russian forces, including the disfiguring of deceased North Korean soldiers’ faces to hide their identities.
