Zelensky said that war with Russia is approaching…

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that the thousands of North Korean soldiers expected to reinforce Russian troops on the front lines in Ukraine are pushing almost three years of war beyond the borders of the warring parties.

Western leaders say North Korea sent about 10,000 troops to help Russia’s military campaign and warned that its involvement in a European war could also undermine relations in the Indo-Pacific region, including Japan and Australia.

Zelensky said he spoke with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and told him that 3,000 North Korean soldiers were already at military bases near the Ukrainian front line and that he expected their numbers to increase to 12,000. South Korea, which is in close contact with NATO, the US and the European Union regarding recent developments, warned last week it may send weapons to Ukraine in retaliation for Northern interference.

“There is only one conclusion: this war is internationalized and goes beyond the borders” of Ukraine and Russia,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram.

The Ukrainian president also said he agreed with Yeol to increase cooperation between their countries and share additional intelligence information between them, as well as develop concrete responses to Pyongyang’s interference.

Meanwhile, North Korea said its chief diplomat is on a visit to Russia this is another sign of their deepening relationship.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are at their highest levels in years, with North Korea continuing a series of provocative weapons tests and South Korea and the United States expanding their military exercises.

Russian drones, missiles and bombs crashed into Kyiv and Kharkov, Ukraine’s largest cities, in overnight attacks, leaving four people dead and 15 injured. ongoing air raidauthorities said Tuesday.

Russia has been bombing civilian areas of Ukraine almost daily since its full-scale invasion of the neighboring country, resulting in thousands of casualties.

The Russian army also active attack on forward defense in the eastern Donetsk region of Ukraine. On Tuesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said Russian troops had captured the Donetsk town of Gornik, as well as the villages of Katerynivka and Bogoyavlenka.

Zelensky also spoke about the war at a meeting on Tuesday in Reykjavik with the leaders of Denmark, Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden. He said a conference would begin in Canada on Wednesday on what he said was Russia’s abduction of tens of thousands of children from the occupied territories of Ukraine.

There was a Russian air attack. KharkovIn northeastern Ukraine, a car crashed into a house at about 3 a.m. and killed four people, regional governor Oleg Sinegubov said. According to him, about 20 houses were damaged as a result of the attack.

Hours earlier, Russia dropped a glide bomb on the landmark State Industry Building in the center of Kharkov, wounding seven people, Mayor Igor Terekhov said. Gosprom, also known as the Palace of Industry, is being considered for inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Terekhov said that in recent days Russia has concentrated attacks on Kharkov. He urged people not to ignore air raid warnings.

Kyiv authorities said debris from intercepted Russian drones fell on two areas of the city, injuring six people.

Ukraine has also used long-range drones. undermine the Russian military machine and embarrass the Kremlin by striking targets on Russian soil.

A special forces academy in the Russian province of Chechnya was attacked by drones, causing a fire that was quickly extinguished, according to Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

It was the first drone attack of the war on Chechnya, which is about 800 kilometers (500 miles) east of Ukraine.

___

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report.

___

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at