North Korean troops killed fighting Ukraine, says US
The United States says North Korean troops were killed in fighting with Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk border region.
These will be the first casualties reported since it appeared In October, North Korea sent approximately 10,000 troops to reinforce Russia’s war effort.
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency GUR said at least 30 North Korean soldiers were killed or injured in weekend fighting.
The BBC has not independently verified these claims.
North Korean troops are believed to have spent their first weeks in training before being deployed to Russia in support roles, without any previous combat experience.
On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had begun launching a “large number” of attacks in Kursk, part of which Ukraine has since occupied. sudden invasion August.
Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters on Monday that the United States believes North Korean soldiers “engaged in combat with Russian troops in Kursk” and “inflicted casualties.”
He did not give specific figures but said troops had been in combat mode since “more than a week ago.”
He added that the North Koreans appeared to be used in an infantry role and so far their involvement was thought to be limited to Kursk, meaning they had not yet been deployed in Ukraine itself.
Russian troops launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and have been advancing in the country’s eastern regions in recent months.
North Korean casualties occurred on Saturday and Sunday in the villages of Plehovo, Vorobza and Martynovka in Kursk, the GUR said.
On Monday, President Zelensky posted drone footage on Telegram showing some men hiding behind trees, saying they were North Korean troops who had just taken part in an attack on Ukrainian positions.
He also posted a video that he said showed Russian troops trying to conceal the presence of North Koreans on the battlefield by burning the faces of the dead in bonfires.
“Ukrainian defense forces and intelligence services are working to determine the full extent of the actual losses suffered by Russian forces, including those in North Korea,” he said.
“There is no reason why North Koreans should die in this war,” he added.
The Kremlin referred questions about the North Korean deaths to the Russian Defense Ministry, which did not comment.
