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North Korean army officers are already in temporarily occupied Ukrainian territory, Volodymyr Zelensky claimed on Thursday.

The Ukrainian president also said the country’s intelligence services had found evidence that about 10,000 North Korean soldiers were being trained to join forces with Russian forces in Ukraine, although the Kremlin spokesman had previously dismissed reports of North Korean involvement.

“Here we see the first step towards world war,” Zelensky added during a one-day summit of EU heads of state and government in Brussels.

Ukraine has previously warned of the dangerous partnership between Russia and Iran, with Moscow’s forces using kamikaze drones on the battlefield for long-range attacks. But sending foreign soldiers to the front was another sign of escalation, Zelensky argued.

“This is no longer just about the transfer of weapons. “It’s actually about sending people from North Korea to the occupying forces,” he said, adding that Putin is trying to drag other participants into this war to prevent greater mobilization of Russian soldiers.

Zelensky had previously met with the 27 leading EU heads of state and government to give the lecture his five-point “victory plan” to end the war by next year.

The first point of this roadmap is an invitation to join the transatlantic military alliance – but to gain NATO membership, Ukraine would need the consent of all 32 allies, including the US.

“If our partners do not help us, Russia’s chances (on the battlefield) increase,” he said, adding that the most important thing besides the arms talks is that the Ukrainian people hope for a post-war future.

Zelenskyy believes that for Ukraine’s victory over Russia it is important to be strong on the battlefield, but above all to have a “security umbrella”.

“In practice, this is the only hope for us,” he said.

But NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte was non-committal on Wednesday about Zelensky’s call to join the military alliance, emphasizing that they are in close contact with Ukraine about the next steps and that the priority now is to ensure that the country is willing to do so in a position to negotiate the best possible deal in future negotiations with Russia.

Zelensky’s victory plan also includes larger air defense systems, continued attacks on targets on Russian territory or access to a wider range of intelligence information from allies.

Our journalists are working on the story. Check back later for updates.