Zelensky criticises west’s muted response to North Korean troops
Volodymyr Zelensky is disappointed with the stance of the West. In his view, the USA, NATO, and the West are not responding adequately to the preparation of North Korean soldiers to fight against Ukraine. Once again, there's also the issue of the potential use of long-range weapons.
In his interview, Zelensky stressed that currently there are about 3,000 soldiers from North Korea in Russia, including military commanders, which is confirmed by a report from Ukrainian intelligence cited by the president. It is estimated that ultimately this number will reach 12,000.
Zelensky considered the involvement of the North Korean military in the Ukrainian war to be "very dangerous." - A new page of the war has been opened - he added in discussions with representatives from the Swedish press agency TT, Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, and Icelandic RUV.
"Putin is testing the West"
President Zelensky expressed disappointment with the reaction of Western countries to these events. According to him, the reactions were too weak, which Putin uses as a test. - We have received some reactions, but they are not strong enough. That is why Putin is testing - he stated.
Referring to Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, Zelensky noted that it was possible because the West did not take action. It was possible because the West was "silent" - No one wanted to do anything. I don't know why, but everyone was afraid of escalating the situation - the Ukrainian president stated.
According to him, after the annexation of Crimea, Putin concluded he could continue his policy and then occupied Donbas, eventually leading to a larger-scale war eight years later.
Zelensky emphasised that he expects a reaction and agreement from allies regarding the use of long-range weapons to attack Russian military targets. - Some countries say it is crossing a red line and that it will make Russia escalate. Excuse me, but North Korean soldiers are an escalation – not from our side - he stated.
Zelensky has grievances with the USA
Zelensky pointed out that Ukraine received only 10% of the aid approved by the US Congress. This package, worth $61 billion, was approved in April after previous delays.
- You do your job. You count on reserves, you count on special brigades, you count on such equipment. And if you get 10% of all the package (that) has already been voted on... it's not funny - Zelensky calculated with resentment.
The president reminded that, according to the promise, NATO countries were supposed to provide Ukraine with several air defence systems by September, which has not yet been fully realised.
Zelensky was in Reykjavik on Monday and Tuesday at the invitation of the Nordic countries' prime ministers. The session of the Nordic Council, an organisation for cooperation between Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Iceland, is being held in the Icelandic capital until Thursday. According to the press assistant of the Nordic Council, only Nordic media were invited for the interview by Zelensky's team.
