Ukraine-Russia latest: North Korea soldiers in Russia targeted by Ukrainian fire for first time, Kyiv says

Top South Korean and European Union officials have condemned North Korea’s reported troop dispatch to aid Russia’s war against Ukraine.

In a meeting in Seoul on Monday, South Korean defense minister Kim Yong Hyun and the EU’s visiting foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, expressed “serious concerns” about North Korea’s reported troop dispatch and “strongly condemned” it, according to a statement from the South Korean defense ministry.

The two agreed to work together with the international community to try to obstruct Russian-North Korean security cooperation, the statement said.

In a background briefing with local media on Monday, South Korea’s military said North Korea has built anti-tank, trench-like structures at two sites near the Korean border. According to US, South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence assessments, North Korea was estimated to have moved about 10,000-12,000 troops to Russia.

Medics in Ukraine are being urged to remove any markings on their vehicles that may set them apart otherwise they’ll be shot at “within 15 minutes”, the Economist has reported.

Earlier this year, the World Health Organisation reported that ambulance workers and other personnel servicing health transport face a risk of injury and death three times higher than that of other healthcare service workers.

A secret underground hospital’s chief medical officer told the Economist: “They don’t even know what it means” when asked about Russia following the Geneva conventions, which forbid targeting medical units.

He said: “If you put a red cross on a car, you’ll be fired on within 15 minutes.”

Moldova’s pro-western President Maia Sandu has won a second term in office in what was a pivotal presidential runoff against a Russia-friendly opponent.

The race was overshadowed by claims of Russian interference, voter fraud and intimidation in the European Union candidate country.

Like Georgia and neighboring Ukraine, Moldova aspires to join the EU but is caught in a constant geopolitical tug between Moscow and the West.

In a victory statement early Monday, Sandu told voters they had “given a lesson in democracy, worthy of being written in history books” and also noted the significant role the diaspora played in her reelection.

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Moldova applied to join the EU. It was granted candidate status in June of that year, and in summer 2024, Brussels agreed to start membership negotiations.

The sharp westward shift irked Moscow and significantly soured relations with Chisinau.

Russian president Vladimir Putin reportedly held a meeting in Russia’s capital with North Korean foreign minister Choe Son Hui, the state news agency TASS reported.

Another agency, Interfax, said the meeting in Moscow took place on Monday.

Choe travelled to Russia last week for her second trip in six weeks, at a time of mounting alarm in the West over military cooperation between the two countries.

UK is now president of the UN Security Council

The UK has become the president of the UN’s Security Council.

It is a rotating position that the UK will hold until the end of November. It was held by Denmark in October and will be taken over by the United States in December.

The UK’s permanent ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward, spoke on the role of president.

“Putin will not stop at Ukraine. We can be sure that Iran and North Korea are exacting a heavy price from Russia for their support.

“Where there is death and chaos, President Putin’s hand is rarely far behind.”

Ukraine’s air defence units were trying to repel a Russian drone attack on Kyiv, the military administration said on Monday.

“Stay in shelters!” Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration said on the Telegram messaging app.

Reuters witnesses heard explosions in Kyiv in what sounded like air defence units in operation.

Ukraine’s army chief has warned that his forces are up against “one of the most intense Russian offensives” since the war began, as Russia announced the capture of additional settlements along the eastern frontline.

Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said the situation on the front line “remains difficult” and certain areas “require constant renewal of resources of Ukrainian units” in a statement on Telegram Saturday morning.

Kyiv’s forces, he said, are “holding back one of the most powerful Russian offensives since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.”

Vice President Kamala Harris has run a presidential campaign on policies intended to appeal to a broad scope of Americans, especially those looking for an alternative to Donald Trump.

Though Harris has spent the last four years in the White House, her role as VP has largely centred around supporting the Biden administration’s initiatives. Having only entered the race in July after President Joe Biden was pushed out, Harris has only had a few months to make her agenda clear.

Once known for progressive liberal policies, Harris has adopted more moderate ideas to appeal to a broader group of Americans. That includes a tougher position on immigration and championing the Second Amendment while still advocating for gun control legislation.

Here’s where she stands on the issues.

Debris from destroyed Russian drones sparked park and grass fires in Kyiv, the mayor of the Ukrainian capital said on Monday.

The drone wreckage caused a fire in the Muromets park in the Desnianskyi district in Kyiv’s northeast and set some grass ablaze on the embankment of the Dnipro River across from the park.

There was no immediate information about potential injuries.

The strikes followed Russian attacks on Sunday that damaged buildings and power lines in Kyiv.

Ukraine‘s military said on Monday it shot down 50 out of 80 Russian drones during overnight attack.

The air force said 27 more drones were “locationally lost” in various regions, likely referring to the impact of electronic warfare.