Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine has captured two injured North Korean soldiers from the battlefield in Russia’s Kursk region and has transferred them to Kyiv. This is the first time Ukraine has detained North Korean troops since Pyongyang deployed soldiers to support Russia last year. Zelenskyy stated that the soldiers, who survived despite being wounded, are receiving necessary medical assistance. He also claimed that Russian and North Korean soldiers typically execute their wounded to hide North Korea’s involvement in the war against Ukraine.
Zelenskyy shared photos of the prisoners, one with both arms bandaged and another with swollen lips and a bandaged head. Ukraine’s military previously warned about Russia trying to conceal the presence of North Korean military personnel through false documents. South Korean intelligence services also reported North Korean soldiers receiving Russian military uniforms and weapons, as well as fake identification documents.
Zelenskyy stated that 4,000 North Korean soldiers have died or been wounded in Kursk, where Ukrainian forces launched a cross-border incursion in August. White House spokesperson John Kirby mentioned North Korean soldiers taking their own lives to avoid capture, fearing reprisals against their families in North Korea. Zelenskyy instructed Ukraine’s security service to allow journalists access to the prisoners to reveal the truth of the situation.
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