Vladimir Putin is regretful over the war in Ukraine, according to the latest claim by one of his closest allies, as US defence officials warned North Korean troops will become ‘legitimate targets’ if they are seen to fight alongside Russian forces.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko delivered a wide-ranging interview with the BBC and state-owned broadcaster BelTA this week in which he was asked whether his Russian counterpart had regrets over launching his so-called ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine.

Lukashenko – arguably the world leader who shares the closest relationship with Putin – sought to explain the Kremlin chief’s view on the conflict which has left hundreds of thousands dead and wounded on both sides. ‘Putin often talks about this – the main thing is the interests of Russia and the Russian people,’ he said. ‘He is obliged to protect these interests… We can condemn him for this, but he thinks this way.’

But he went on to claim that the brutality of the conflict is weighing heavy on the mind of the Russian President.

‘Both sides suffer heavy losses… Does Putin regret it or not? Of course he regrets. He’s a living man.’

Putin’s reported regret over the human cost of the conflict comes amid speculation that thousands of troops from North Korea are now in Russia, most likely in preparation for battle in Ukraine. 

Moscow and Pyongyang have dismissed the claims as fabrications, but Ukraine, the US and South Korea all insist their intelligence puts thousands of North Korean soldiers on Russian soil.

US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby declared last night that Washington is not certain whether the troops are headed for the frontline, but added: ‘If these North Korean troops are employed against Ukraine ‘they will become legitimate military targets’.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meanwhile has warned that the participation of a third country could escalate the conflict into a world war. In his BBC interview, Lukashenko said it was a ‘lie’ and ‘rubbish’ that North Korean troops were being drafted in to fight in the Ukraine war.

He also denied that he would order Belarus troops to assist Putin.

‘Knowing his character Putin would never try to persuade another country to involve its army in Russia’s special operation in Ukraine,’ he said, before warning such a move would constitute an ‘escalation of the conflict’ and could trigger the deployment of Western forces.

‘It would be a step towards the escalation of the conflict if the armed forces of any country, even Belarus, were on the contact line,’ Lukashenko said. 

‘Even if we got involved in the war this would be a path to escalation. Why? Because you, the Anglo-Saxons, would immediately say that another country had got involved on one side… so NATO troops would be deployed to Ukraine.’

Meanwhile, Kyiv is preparing as though combating North Korea in its territory is inevitable.

Zelensky told reporters Monday that North Korean officers and technical personnel have already been spotted in Russian-occupied territories. 

‘I believe they sent officers first to assess the situation before deploying troops,’ Zelensky said. 

Ukraine’s ‘I Want to Live’ project, a hotline encouraging Russian soldiers to surrender, published a video in Korean on Wednesday calling for North Korean soldiers to give up.

‘We call for the soldiers of the Korean People’s Army, who were sent to help the Putin regime. You should not die senselessly on someone else’s land. There is no need to repeat the fate of hundreds of thousands of Russian soldiers who will never return home!’ it said.

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