World on the brink as North Korea sends 'cannon fodder' troops to Ukraine

North Korea is to send military units to Ukraine in support of Russia's war, as fears grow of a critical escalation in the conflict.

Last week, Putin made an official state visit to North Korea, the first time in 24 years that he had travelled to the country.

The Russian leader and his host Kim Jong Un signed a defence pact on June 19 in Pyongyang, promising military assistance to one another.

Within days of signing the agreement, North Korea has announced it will be sending a unit of military engineers to join Russia's army on the ground in the Donetsk region.

The North Korean unit is expected to arrive in Ukraine as soon as next month, raising fears that Pyongyang is becoming an active combatant in the war.

The country is already supplying Russia with ammunition and missiles and is reported to have shipped as many as 1.6 million artillery shells to Putin's army.

A spokesman for the Pentagon said North Korean troops would be sent to their slaughter and questioned the wisdom of the deployment.

Pat Ryder told journalists at a briefing: "I think that if I were North Korean military personnel management, I would be questioning my choices on sending my forces to be cannon fodder in an illegal war against Ukraine."

He added the United States would continue to monitor the ever-deepening military ties between the two countries.

The military alliance between Putin and Kim states: "In case any one of the two sides is put in a state of war by an armed invasion from an individual state or several states, the other side shall provide military and other assistance with all means in its possession without delay."

A former Russian MP told the Express that North Korea is an important bridge between the Kremlin and China, allowing Beijing to transfer military equipment to Moscow without falling foul of Western sanctions.

Ilya Ponomarev explained: "North Korea is one of key Russian partners and the meaning of the rationale behind them becoming such a partner is because they are acting as a bridge between China and Russia.

"Essentially all this military equipment that is supposed to be delivered from North Korea once was developed for North Koreans by the Chinese.

"China is cautious not to get under secondary sanctions by the United States, but North Korea is not in danger.

"So there is no problem for Chinese to assist North Koreans and then North Koreans to make trade with Russia and benefit from this both financially and in terms of military development."