North Korean soldiers face heavy losses in Kursk conflict
In Russia's Kursk region, about a thousand North Korean soldiers have reportedly been killed in clashes with Ukrainian forces, according to a BBC report citing anonymous Western officials. It is suggested that Putin treats the troops sent by Kim Jong Un as expendable, often deploying them in positions for which they aren't adequately trained.
There have been intense battles in Russia's Kursk region, with around a thousand North Korean soldiers killed. This information was reported by the BBC, with anonymous Western officials as the source. In total, 11,000 North Korean soldiers have fought in Russia, with 4,000 either killed, wounded, missing, or captured.
In the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (SSO) have killed 21 and wounded 40 North Korean soldiers who attacked Ukrainian positions in the Kursk region of Russia. The clash between the two sides lasted for more than eight hours.
Dramatic situation of North Korean soldiers
It is unclear where the wounded North Korean soldiers are being treated or whether they will be replaced with new reinforcements. However, Kim Jong Un has already announced he will send additional troops to the front line. Radio Free Asia revealed that the fallen soldiers are posthumously inducted into the Workers' Party of Korea, and their families are not informed about the circumstances of their deaths or their involvement in the war.
On 11 January, Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian services (SBU) had captured two North Korean soldiers who are now being treated in Kyiv and are being interrogated regularly. The interrogations have so far revealed that soldiers are sent blindly to the front, often unaware of who they will be fighting against.
These testimonies are corroborated by former British Army tank commander, Col. Hamish de Bretton-Gordon.
Quite frankly they don't stand a chance. They are being thrown into the meat grinder with little chance of survival. They are cannon fodder, and the Russian officers care even less for them than they do for their own men, he says in an interview with the BBC.
Ukrainian forces entered the Kursk region on 6 August 2024. The objective of the offensive was to compel the Russians to redeploy some forces from the Donbas. By the end of August, Kyiv controlled approximately 1,240 square kilometres of this region, but since September, Ukrainian forces have begun losing ground due to the Russian counteroffensive.
