The United States announced Friday an additional $425 million in military assistance for Ukraine, a move that follows reports suggesting thousands of North Korean soldiers could soon join the conflict on Russia’s side.

The latest aid package, according to the US Defense Department, aims to support Ukraine’s pressing battlefield needs. It includes air defense interceptors, munitions for rocket systems and artillery, armored vehicles, and anti-tank weapons. Also supplied are air-to-ground munitions, medical equipment, demolition munitions, and spare parts, all drawn from existing US stocks.

“The United States will continue to work… to meet Ukraine’s urgent battlefield requirements and defend against Russian aggression,” the department stated.

This announcement came a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reported that North Korea had sent around 10,000 troops to Russia, with as many as 8,000 stationed in Russia’s Kursk region near the Ukrainian border. Blinken noted that while these troops have not yet engaged in combat, US officials expect them to join the conflict against Ukrainian forces soon.

Ukrainian troops have been advancing in Kursk since August, seizing control of hundreds of square miles of territory in what has become a significant pushback against Russian forces. The possibility of North Korean troops entering the battle marks a heightened phase in the Moscow-Pyongyang alliance, stirring international concerns over the conflict’s escalating nature.

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the US has been a principal military supporter of Kyiv, committing over $60 billion in security aid, including weapons and ammunition.