Zelensky: We killed and wounded 3,000 North Korean soldiers in Russia’s Kursk | news
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced – today, Monday – that more than 3,000 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded in battles aimed at confronting the Ukrainian attack on the Russian Kursk region.
According to Western reports, Pyongyang sent thousands of soldiers to support the Russian army, especially in the Kursk border region, where Ukraine launched a surprise attack last August.
“Based on preliminary data, the number of North Korean soldiers killed and wounded in the Kursk region has already exceeded 3,000,” Zelensky wrote on the X platform.
The Ukrainian President stated that he received a report from the Chief of Staff of the Army Oleksandr Sirsky regarding the situation in the Kursk region.
He warned of “the dangers of North Korea sending additional forces and military equipment to the Russian army.”
Zelensky stressed that the world must understand that “growing cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang” leads to an increase in “the risk of destabilization around the Korean Peninsula and in neighboring regions and waters.”
Intelligence information
For its part, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement, “We estimate the losses incurred by the North Korean forces that recently participated in the battles against the Ukrainian forces at 1,100 individuals,” including dead and wounded.
She added that intelligence collected by South Korea indicates that its northern neighbor produces and delivers to Russia drones capable of self-destruction.
He added that Pyongyang also supplies Moscow with 170 mm cannons and “Koksan” cannons with a range of between 40 and 60 km, as well as multiple 240 mm rocket launchers.
North Korea has never confirmed or denied deploying forces alongside Russian forces. The two countries have strengthened their military relations since Moscow’s war on Kiev in February 2022.
Earlier this month, a joint defense treaty between Moscow and Pyongyang that was signed last June entered into force. It provides for “immediate military assistance” if armed aggression by a third country occurs.
On the other hand, South Korea and Ukraine announced a month ago that they would strengthen their security cooperation, in response to the “threat” posed by the deployment of North Korean forces.
