BERLIN: Germany on Friday warned that Russia deploying North Korean troops in Ukraine would be a “clear escalation”.
The statement comes after President Volodymyr Zelensky said Moscow could send soldiers dispatched by Pyongyang into the battleground this weekend.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, during a visit to India, termed the development “very worrying” and said it showed that Russia was facing difficulties in the war.
“It is serious and, of course, something that escalates the situation further,” he told German media. “It also shows at the same time that the Russian president is in great need,” he said.
A spokeswoman of the German foreign ministry had earlier said that Russia deploying North Korean troops in Ukraine would be a “clear escalation”.
“We call on the North Korean side not to contribute to this, and to refrain from doing anything in this direction,” Kathrin Deschauer told a press briefing in Berlin.
Seoul and Washington have accused North Korea of sending thousands of troops to Russia.
North Korea on Friday said that any deployment of troops to Russia would be in line with international law.
