“The Ukrainian military engaged in a battle with North Korean troops deployed in the Kursk region near the Russian border. These North Korean soldiers were disguised as indigenous people from the Far East and reportedly carried identification,” a report stated.
According to local media RBC Ukraine, Ukrainian Army Chief of Staff Anatolii Barilevych announced on the 24th (local time) that more than 11,000 North Korean soldiers were assigned to Kursk, and some participated in combat against their own troops. Regarding the North Korean soldiers encountered in Kursk, he explained, “Most belonged to regular units and were disguised as Russian Far East locals while also carrying identification. They appear to have been trained to conduct operations in Europe.”
Earlier, on the 20th, the National Intelligence Service had also identified that North Korean troops were attached to the Russian airborne brigade and marines, with some participating in battles against Ukrainian forces. They revealed that specific intelligence suggested North Korean casualties, which they were investigating. The American military-focused media outlet Global Defense Corporation reported that on the 20th, Ukraine bombarded Kursk with ‘Storm Shadow,’ an air-to-surface cruise missile received from the UK, killing 500 North Korean soldiers.
Meanwhile, Dmytro Kuleba, former Ukrainian Foreign Minister, predicted that the war would not end quickly even if Donald Trump, the U.S. President-elect, takes office. He argued that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would not succumb to Trump’s pressure to abandon the war, stating, “Ukraine will not accept hasty solutions. The key point is that the key to peace lies in Moscow, not Ukraine.”