Ukraine-Russia latest: North Korea vows to back Putin’s war as US claims thousands of troops prepare for battle

Comes as Russia unleashes overnight drone attack on Kyiv, say officials

Video from Ukraine claims to show North Korean soldiers lining up to collect Russia military gear

North Korea has vowed to back Russia until it achieves victory in its war against Ukraine.

“Our traditional, historically friendly relations, which have travelled the tested path of history, today ... are rising to a new level of relations of invincible military comradeship,” Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said on Friday at talks in Moscow with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, as she praised Vladimir Putin’s “wise leadership” in the invasion.

It came as US secretary of state Antony Blinken warned North Korean troops fighting inside the Russian President’s “meat grinder” war would be a legitimate military target.

The top US diplomat claimed that the North Korean soldiers will enter the war in Ukraine in the “coming days” as he confirmed there are 10,000 already in Russia, including as many as 8,000 in the Kursk region.

Meanwhile, Russia unleashed an overnight drone attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv that lasted into late morning and wounded at least one person, city officials said on Saturday.

Debris from downed drones struck six city districts, wounding a police officer, damaging residential buildings and starting fires, according to city military administrator Serhiy Popko.

Key Points

• North Korea says it will back Russia until it ‘achieves a great victory’ in Ukraine
• North Koreans training in ‘basic infantry operations’ in Ukraine, says Blinken
• At least two injured as Russian drone attack launched on Kyiv
• Senior officer killed and 40 injured in Kharkiv missile strike

[1 November 2024 09:01 · Andy Gregory]

Russia’s Lavrov to visit EU first time since the start of Ukraine war, report suggests

Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov plans to visit Malta in December – in what would mark his first visit to the EU since Russia invaded Ukraine – to take part in a meeting of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), according to a report citing foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.

Malta’s embassy to Russia told Russian outlet Vedomosti that the decision to hold the OSCE ministerial council meeting on the island on 5 and 6 December “applies to all members, including the Russian Federation”.

“OSCE delegations are regularly informed about the progress of preparations. Further practical details, including invitations, will be sent to all OSCE delegations in due course,” it said.

[1 November 2024 08:42 · Andy Gregory]

Ukraine destroys 31 Russian drones in overnight strike, air force says

Ukrainian air defences destroyed 31 out of 48 drones launched overnight by Russia, Kyiv’s air force has said.

Another 14 drones were “locationally lost” and one out of three cruise missiles launched was also destroyed, the air force said.

[1 November 2024 08:21 · Andy Gregory]

Fire as drone falls on oil depot in Russia’s Stavropol region

A drone fell on an oil depot in Russia’s southern Stavropol region, local governor Vladimir Vladimirov has said, adding that there were no casualties.

It marks the second suspected Ukrainian attack in consecutive days on Russian fuel and energy targets, following a lull of around seven weeks since a fuel facility in Tula was attacked.

Baza Telegram channel, which is close to Russia’s security services, posted a CCTV video purportedly showing the attack on the oil depot. The footage showed that at least one of several fuel tanks was swiftly engulfed by a fireball.

On Thursday, several fuel and energy facilities were targeted in a Ukrainian drone attack on the central Russian region of Bashkortostan, home to Bashneft, a major oil company controlled by Russia’s leading oil producer, Rosneft .

The attacks come days after the Financial Times reported early-stage talks between Ukraine and Russia about potentially halting airstrikes on each other’s energy facilities. The Kremlin dismissed the report.

[1 November 2024 08:00 · Arpan Rai]

Pentagon chief says Putin lost a lot of troops and is now relying on North Korea

US defence secretary Lloyd Austin has said Russia is now relying on North Korean troops in the wake of heavy battlefield losses.

“They’re doing this because (Russian president Vladimir) Putin has lost a lot of troops,” Mr Austin said, adding that Moscow has a choice between mobilising more of its own forces or turning to others for help.

Mr Austin said Ukraine could hold on to Russian territory in Kursk, and that the number of North Korean troops pales in comparison to casualties Russian forces recently have been suffering – some 1,250 a day.

“I do believe that they can hold on to the territory, if they choose to do that. They do have options,” Austin said of Ukrainian troops.

Russia has had to shift some resources to the Kursk border region to respond to Ukraine’s offensive.

[1 November 2024 07:10 · Arpan Rai]

Russia says it downed 83 Ukrainian drones overnight

Russian air defences downed 83 Ukrainian drones overnight, the TASS news agency cited Russia’s defence ministry this morning.

[1 November 2024 07:00 · Salma Ouaguira]

ICYMI: South Korea considers sending team to Ukraine to monitor North Korean troop deployment

South Korea has said it is considering sending a military team to Ukraine to monitor the expected deployment of North Korean troops on the frontlines by Russia.

North Korea has sent some 11,000 soldiers to Russia and over 3,000 of them have been moved close to the frontlines, Reuters quoted an unnamed South Korean official as saying.

The official said North Korea will gain military knowledge from its troops helping the Russian war effort which poses a military threat to South Korea. “So it is incumbent upon us to analyse and monitor the activities of North Korean troops against our ally, Ukraine,” the official added.