Zelenskyy Says Russia Wants To Bring North Korean Troops Into Ukraine War Again

Key Points:

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that Russia is preparing to deploy 30,000 North Korean troops to Ukraine, with preparations underway in Russia’s Voronezh region since June; neither Russia nor North Korea has commented on this claim.
• This would be the second deployment of North Korean forces to support Russia in the Ukraine conflict, following their earlier involvement in Russia’s Kursk region in 2024.
• Ukraine has intensified long-range drone strikes targeting Russian energy infrastructure, logistics hubs, and military-related facilities deep inside Russia, including recent attacks on vessels in the Caspian Sea and an offshore oil platform operated by Lukoil.
• The Ukrainian drone strikes have caused casualties and damage, including civilian deaths in the Rostov and Sumy regions, while Russia reported intercepting hundreds of Ukrainian drones; the attacks coincide with ongoing Russian missile and glide bomb strikes on Ukrainian cities causing multiple civilian fatalities.
• Kyiv observed a day of mourning following a Russian missile strike near Kyiv that killed at least 10 people at a drone technology exhibition, with regional officials condemning the attack as a terrorist act targeting civilians.