Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian forces operating in the Kursk region of Russia have captured two North Korean soldiers. The soldiers, who were wounded, were transported to Kyiv for communication with the Security Service of Ukraine.
Reports indicate that around 11,000 North Korean troops are deployed in the Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces have occupied several hundred square kilometers since a cross-border incursion in August last year. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken mentioned that over 1,000 North Korean forces were killed or wounded in Kursk in the last week of December.
Zelensky highlighted the challenges in capturing the North Korean soldiers, mentioning that Russian forces and other North Korean military personnel typically eliminate wounded soldiers to conceal North Korea's involvement in the conflict with Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) released a video showing the captured soldiers in appropriate conditions, with one soldier having a jaw wound and the other a fractured leg. The SBU stated that communication with the soldiers is being facilitated through Korean interpreters in collaboration with the South Korean intelligence service.
Additionally, the SBU revealed that one of the soldiers was carrying a Russian military ID card issued in the name of a person from Tuva in Russia. The soldier claimed to have received the document in Russia last autumn and mentioned that some North Korean combat units had minimal training with Russian troops.
According to the SBU's account, one of the captured soldiers believed he was sent to Russia for training rather than combat. The soldiers are currently being held in custody as the investigation continues.
