U.S. says 8,000 North Korean troops in Russia's Kursk

The United States has received information that indicates that "right now" there are 8,000 North Korean troops in Russia's Kursk region, deputy U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Wood told the Security Council on Thursday.

"I have a very respectful question for my Russian colleague: does Russia still maintain that there are no DPRK troops in Russia?" Wood said, referring to North Korea's formal name - the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The Russian representative in the 15-member Security Council did not respond.