Security Service reveals details of North Korean soldiers captured by Ukrainian forces in Kursk region
Photo: the SSU disclosed details about the DPRK soldiers captured by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kursk region (t.me/V_Zelenskiy_official)
Ukrainian Defense Forces have captured the first North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region. Law enforcement authorities have provided details about them, reports Security Service of Ukraine (SSU).
The two North Korean soldiers in question were captured by members of the Tactical Group No. 84 of the Special Operations Forces on January 9 and by Ukrainian paratroopers.
Immediately after their capture, the prisoners were provided with all necessary medical care, as stipulated by the Geneva Convention.
Details about the North Korean prisoners
At the time of their capture, one of the foreign soldiers was carrying a Russian-style military ID card, issued in the name of another person, with registration in the Republic of Tuva, Russia.
During the interrogation, the North Korean soldier who had the ID card told SSU officers that the document was issued to him in Russia in the fall of 2024. He stated that during that period, part of the North Korean combat units underwent coordination with Russian forces for a week.
He claimed to have been born in 2005 and to have served as a rifleman in the North Korean army since 2021. Notably, like Russian soldiers at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the prisoner emphasized that he had been told he was traveling for training, not for war against Ukraine.
The other prisoner confirmed his "comrade's" statements. Some of his responses were given in writing due to an injured jaw. According to preliminary information, he was born in 1999 and has been serving in the North Korean army as a sniper-scout since 2016. He was without any documents.
North Korean prisoners now in Kyiv
For initial investigative measures, the prisoners were transferred to Kyiv. They are being held under proper conditions that meet international legal standards.
The prisoners do not speak Ukrainian, English, or Russian, so communication with them is conducted through Korean language translators, in cooperation with the South Korean National Intelligence Service.
Currently, the SSU is conducting necessary investigative actions to establish all circumstances surrounding the involvement of North Korean soldiers in Russia's war against Ukraine. The investigation is being carried out under the procedural guidance of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine under Article 437 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (planning, preparation, initiation, and waging an aggressive war).
As reported, the Ukrainian Armed Forces captured two North Korean soldiers in the Kursk region. This was no easy task, as Russians and other North Korean soldiers typically finish off their wounded and do everything possible to eliminate evidence of North Korea's involvement in the war against Ukraine.
