Vladimir Putin FINALLY admits North Korean army is fighting for him against Ukraine

Vladimir Putin has thanked North Korean troops for fighting Ukrainian forces in ’s Kursk region - confirming that 's army is supporting him for the first time.

In a statement from the Kremlin this morning, Putin hailed the "heroism and dedication" of 's fighters, who he said "shoulder to shoulder with Russian fighters, defended our Motherland as their own." Over the weekend, Russia said its troops have fully reclaimed the Kursk region that Ukrainian forces had seized in a surprise incursion last year. But Ukrainian officials have denied the claim. The confirmation of military support from the rogue state comes after months of denials, while US, South Korean and intelligence officials have claimed that North Korea dispatched 10,000-12,000 troops to Russia last autumn in its first participation in a major armed conflict since the end of the Korean War.

North Korea hadn’t confirmed or denied its reported troop deployments to Russia until Monday.

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent the combat troops to Russia under a mutual defence treaty he and Putin signed in June 2024, the North’s Central Military Commission said in a statement carried by state media.

The treaty — considered the two countries’ biggest agreement since the end of the Cold War — requires both nations to use all available means to provide immediate military assistance if either is attacked.

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