G7, allies are working on joint response to DPRK troop deployment in Russia

This is mentioned in a statement by the ministers, Ukrinform reports.

The statement was signed by G7 members the United States, Japan, Italy, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada, and allies South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

In the document, the states expressed ‘serious concern over the deployment of DPRK troops in the Russian Federation, which could be used on the battlefield against Ukraine’.

‘Several thousand DPRK troops have been deployed in Russia. The DPRK's direct support for Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine, in addition to demonstrating Moscow's desperate efforts to compensate for its losses, will mean a dangerous expansion of the conflict, which will have serious consequences for peace and security in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region,’ the statement reads.

The foreign ministers also added that they condemned in the strongest terms the strengthening of military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, including the ‘illegal purchase’ of North Korean ballistic missiles by Russia.

At the same time, the statement reaffirmed support for Ukraine, assuring that the G7 foreign ministers are working with international partners ‘on a coordinated response to new developments.’