Vladimir Putin has sidestepped claims that North Korea has sent soldiers to Russia, insisting that it was up to Moscow how to run its mutual defence clause with Pyongyang.

Speaking at the close of the Brics summit in Kazan on Thursday, he accused the west of escalating the Ukraine war and said it was “living an illusion” if it thought it could inflict a strategic defeat on Russia.

The US said it had seen evidence that North Korea had sent 3,000 troops to Russia for possible deployment in Ukraine, a move that could mark a fundamental challenge to Ukraine due to its manpower shortages.

Asked by a reporter about satellite imagery apparently showing North Korean troop movements, Putin said: “Images are a serious thing. If there are images, then they reflect something.”

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