Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of using North Korean soldiers in its war against Ukraine, with the soldiers allegedly using fake identification documents to conceal their foreign origins.
Ukrainian special forces reported that they had recovered documents from three North Korean soldiers killed in the Kursk region, near the Russian border. The documents appeared to identify the soldiers as Russian, but the signatures were in Korean, revealing their true nationality.
“This case further confirms that Russia is using any means to hide its battlefield losses and conceal the presence of foreign forces,” the Ukrainian statement said.
Meanwhile, South Korean military officials have reported that around 1,100 North Korean soldiers have been killed or wounded since being deployed to Russia to fight against Ukraine.
In a statement on Monday, South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff (JCS) said, “We assess that North Korean troops, who have recently engaged in combat with Ukrainian forces, have suffered around 1,100 casualties.”
