North Korean soldiers deployed to the Kursk region of Russia have begun combat operations against Ukrainian troops, the U.S. State Department confirmed Tuesday.

North Korean troops have begun engaging in combat operations alongside Russian forces, the U.S. State Department said on Tuesday, expressing concern that Russia had turned to North Korea for soldiers to fight in its war with Ukraine.

"Today I can confirm that over 10,000 (North Korean) soldiers have been sent to eastern Russia, and most of them have moved to the far western Kursk Oblast, where they have begun engaging in combat operations with Russian forces,

Ukraine's military intelligence has intercepted what it claims are radio communications between North Korean soldiers in Russia, amid media reports of a massive troop buildup ahead of an attack in the Kursk region.

Ukrainian officials expect a counteroffensive in western Russia to begin in the coming days as North Korea’s troops train with Russian forces.

North Korean soldiers, who were previously sent to Russia, are now in Kursk Oblast and are "already engaging in combat" operations against Ukraine. Source: Yonhap, citing South Korea's spy agency Details: The intelligence service reported that "North Korean soldiers dispatched to Russia have moved to Kursk Oblast over the past two weeks and their deployment to battlefields has been completed".

U.S. State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel says on November 12 that the majority of some 10,000 North Korean troops sent to support Russia’s war against Ukraine are now “engaging in combat operations” in Russia’s western Kursk region.

U.S. Secretary of State Blinken talks tough on North Korea as he meets with NATO in Brussels:::: Brussels, Belgium:: Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State“We had a very productive discussion today about our ongoing support for Ukraine in the face of an ongoing Russian aggression.