Ukrainians capture first North Korean POW, military says

On 26 December, reports emerged that Ukrainian special forces had captured a North Korean soldier fighting for Russia during an operation in Kursk Oblast, Militarnyi reports. The captured soldier was reportedly taken prisoner by Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SSO), as shared via the Telegram channel Warshal, with photos of the prisoner circulating on other platforms. This marks the first confirmed instance of a North Korean soldier being captured.

Reports of North Korean involvement in the Ukraine war surfaced on 14 December, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the presence of North Korean soldiers fighting in Russia’s Kursk Oblast. Ukrainian intelligence earlier revealed that North Korean troops had been placed on high alert on 13 December, with orders to await further instructions.

The operation not only led to the soldier’s capture but also reportedly resulted in Ukrainian forces seizing a Russian BTR-82 armored personnel carrier, alongside weapons and documents.

“An SSO group conducted an operation to destroy the enemy in the Kursk sector. In addition to the successful completion of the mission, there were also trophies: prisoners, including a mercenary from Korea, and a BTR equipped with anti-cumulative protection,” the report reads, according to Militarnyi.

The prisoner, identified as possibly being the first North Korean soldier, appeared to have been injured. It remains unclear if evacuation and stabilization efforts succeeded in ensuring his transfer to medical facilities, Militarnyi notes.

Previously, US, South Korean, and Ukrainian sources reported the deployment of 10,000 to 12,000 North Korean troops in Russia, undergoing training for further involvement in the Russo-Ukrainian war on the Russian side.

Recently, the North Koreans started multiple frontal assaults against the Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk Oblast. Photographic and video evidence, including drone footage, substantiated the claims of North Korean deployment on the frontlines. Ukrainian forces also recovered Russian-issued military documents from North Korean soldiers, featuring inconsistently filled records with names purportedly of Russian origin.

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