South Korea’s intelligence service said on Saturday Ukraine captured two wounded North Korean soldiers who were fighting on behalf of Russia in the Russian border area, confirming an account by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Seoul’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) told AFP it had “confirmed that Ukrainian forces captured two North Korean soldiers in Russia’s Kursk battlefield on January 9.”
The confirmation came after Zelensky said in a post on the Telegram messaging app that two captured North Korean soldiers were wounded and taken to Kiev, where they are communicating with the Ukrainian security services SBU.
The SBU released a video showing two prisoners on beds inside prison cells. The authenticity of the video could not be independently verified.
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In this unverified photo shared by the Ukrainian military, a captured North Korean soldier, apparently injured, sits on a bed inside a cell. (Ukraine military handout)
A doctor interviewed in the SBU video said one soldier was wounded in the face while the other soldier had an open wound and a fractured lower leg. Both persons were receiving medical treatment.
In this unverified photo shared by the Ukrainian military, a captured North Korean soldier, apparently injured, lies on a bed inside a cell. (Ukraine military handout)
The SBU also said that one soldier had no documents, while the other had a Russian military ID card in the name of an individual from Tuva, a Russian region bordering Mongolia.
Ukraine’s military says North Korean soldiers are wearing Russian military uniforms and carrying fake military IDs in their pockets Ukraine’s military intelligence agency spokesman Andrey Yusov says this could mean Moscow and “Joint Its representatives in the nation can deny the facts.”
Despite Ukrainian, American and South Korean claims that Pyongyang has sent 10,000 – 12,000 troops to fight with Russia in the Kursk border area, Moscow has never publicly acknowledged North Korean forces.
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While reports of their presence first emerged in October, Ukrainian troops only confirmed the attack on the ground in December.
On Thursday, Zelensky put the number of North Koreans killed or injured at 4,000, although the US estimate is lower, about 1,200.
Soldiers are seen at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, on October 12, 2020. (AP Photo/John Chol Jin, File)
Despite North Korea’s heavy losses and initial inexperience on the battlefield, Ukrainian soldiers, military intelligence and experts suggest that first-hand experience will only help them develop as a fighting force.
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“For the first time in decades, the North Korean army is gaining real military experience,” Yusov said. “This is a global challenge – not just for Ukraine and Europe, but for the whole world.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
