White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday that the United States is monitoring reports of North Korean soldiers being sent “to Russia” to fight in Ukraine.

“We obviously continue to review these reports,” Kirby said. “We are also talking to our allies and partners about what they have to say about this. If it is true that the DPRK soldiers are going there to join the war against Ukraine, it would certainly be a dangerous and extremely worrying development.”

Kirby said the development signals “further evidence of Putin's growing desperation and his growing isolation that he needs to turn to North Korea for potential – potential, as I said, we are reviewing the reports – potential infantry support for his ground operations.”

“There is no question that its forces continue to suffer extraordinary casualties on the battlefield,” Kirby said, citing figures that show Russia is losing more than 1,200 soldiers per day.

US “concerned” about reports of North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Russia in Ukraine

National Security Council Coordinator John Kirby speaks during a press conference at the White House on June 21, 2022. (Sarah Silbiger/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“This is a truly historic number of soldiers killed and wounded in this battle, all to further a distorted and distorted view of Ukraine's ability to exist as a sovereign state,” Kirby said. “I think all of this is evidence that Mr. Putin is becoming more and more desperate and isolated on the world stage.”

The US and NATO have not confirmed the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia. But reports of their presence have already fueled fears in South Korea that Russia could provide North Korea with sophisticated technologies that could significantly improve the North's nuclear and missile programs in return for the troop deployment.

South Korea summoned Russia's ambassador on Monday to protest deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow and demand the immediate withdrawal of North Korean troops.

President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un shake hands during their meeting in Russia's Amur region on September 13, 2023. (Vladimir Smirnov/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Vladimir Putin meets with Iranian President Pezeshkian to celebrate 'very close' relationship

South Korean intelligence said Friday it had confirmed that North Korea sent 1,500 special forces to Russia this month to support Moscow's war against Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky previously said his government had information that 10,000 North Korean soldiers were being prepared to join invading Russian forces.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, will shake hands with several world leaders this week, including China's Xi Jinping, India's Narendra Modi, Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iran's Masoud Pezeshkian. They will gather in the Russian city of Kazan on Tuesday for a meeting of the BRICS bloc of developing countries, defying predictions that the war in Ukraine and an international arrest warrant for Putin would turn him into a pariah.

A Ukrainian tank fires during an exercise toward Khasiv Yar, Ukraine, July 20, 2024. (Ethan Swope/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The alliance, intended to provide a counterweight to the Western-led world order, initially included Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa but began expanding rapidly this year. Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia joined in January; Turkey, Azerbaijan and Malaysia have officially applied, and a number of others have expressed a desire to become members.

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“These countries can decide for themselves who they want to work with and, above all, how they want to be economically connected. “Russia is increasingly isolated on the world stage,” Kirby said on Monday. “That is beyond question. Mr. Putin still needs to take radical steps to shore up his currency and keep his war economy afloat.”

According to Reuters, Putin is expected to end the BRICS conference with a press conference on Thursday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.