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North Korean soldiers fighting Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region have begun resorting to harsh measures, including suicide, to avoid capture, Reuters reported on Tuesday.
After this week’s fighting, Ukrainian special forces searched a snow-covered area and reportedly encountered more than a dozen North Korean soldiers still alive after being killed. The North Korean soldier apparently committed suicide by pulling out a grenade and detonating it, but Ukrainian troops nearby were not injured.
The Ukrainian military has installed defensive structures such as barbed wire on many key routes within the Sumy region to protect against potential Russian counterattacks. (Photo by Serhiy Morgunov/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Ukraine captures two North Korean soldiers, South Korean intelligence agency announces
News of the self-sacrificing tactics being employed comes days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said for the first time that two North Korean prisoners had been captured by Ukrainian forces.
President Zelensky acknowledged the capture in an address to the nation on Saturday, saying it was “not easy” and claiming that North Korean and Russian forces appeared to have “dealt the final blow to the wounded South Korean troops” in order to prevent the capture.
Ukraine has repeatedly claimed that Russia issued military IDs to North Korean troops in an attempt to cover up evidence that foreign forces were assisting Moscow in the war, but what Western countries, including the United States, are saying? For months, we have confirmed that North Korea is sending troops to Russia. .
As many as 12,000 North Korean soldiers are deployed to Russia, and an estimated 11,000 of them are stationed in Kursk to prevent Ukrainian advances.
Zelenskiy and South Korean intelligence said North Korean forces in Kursk had suffered about 3,000 casualties since they entered the fighting in mid-November.
North Korean soldiers participate in a demonstration of the Korean People’s Army’s air and amphibious combat units in this photo published by the Korean Central News Agency on March 16. (Reuters/Korean Central News Agency)
Kim Jong Un’s big gun discovered on the Russian front: Report
In a post to X on Sunday, President Zelenskyy shared a video of two captured North Korean soldiers being treated and interrogated about what they knew before being drawn into front-line combat.
One of the soldiers said he did not know he was going to war with Ukraine to support Russia, but rather believed he and his soldiers were being sent for training.
However, by January 3, one of the soldiers became aware of the activity, witnessed a North Korean soldier die, and then hid in a trench for two days. He was discovered on January 5th.
In this unidentified photo shared by the Ukrainian military, a wounded North Korean soldier, believed to be a prisoner of war, sits on a bed in his cell. (Distribution to the Ukrainian military)
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Western intelligence has repeatedly suggested that North Korea’s military is unprepared for combat involving it, and President Zelenskyy said on Sunday that “it is only a matter of time before our troops capture other forces.” Ta.
“Ukraine is ready to hand over Kim Jong Un’s soldiers if we can arrange an exchange with our fighters held captive in Russia,” Zelensky said. “For North Korean soldiers who do not wish to return, there may be other options.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
