North Korean troops who go to fight in Ukraine alongside Russia “will return in body bags,” the US deputy ambassador to the United Nations said Wednesday, delivering a warning to leader Kim Jong Un by name.

“Should DPRK’s troops enter Ukraine in support of Russia, they will surely return in body bags,” Robert Wood told the Security Council. “So I would advise Chairman Kim to think twice about engaging in such reckless and dangerous behavior.”

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U.S. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday Ukraine should strike back if North Korean troops crossed into Ukraine, adding he was concerned by the presence of North Korean troops in the Kursk region in Russia.

“I am concerned about it,” Biden said when asked about North Korean troops being present in the Kursk region.

“If they cross into Ukraine, yes,” Biden said when asked if the Ukrainians should strike back.

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President Zelensky on Monday said that he expects 12,000 North Korean soldiers on Russian territory “soon”.

Some 3,000 North Korean soldiers and officers are “already on Russian territory, and they (Russia) will use both on our territory”, the Ukrainian president said at a press conference in Iceland on Monday evening.

“We think that they will have 12,000 soon” on Russian territory, he added.

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