North Korea has publicly confirmed for the first time that its military is participating in Russiaʼs full-scale war against Ukraine, in particular, fighting in the Kursk sector.
This was reported by the Korean state news agency KCNA.
The Central Military Commission of the Workersʼ Party “highly praised” the combat units of the DPRK “for their heroic deeds in operations to repel and destroy the gross encroachment on sovereignty by the Ukrainian authorities, which invaded the territory of the Russian Federation”. The commission also stated that the Kursk region was allegedly completely “liberated”.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un decided to send his troops to help Russia in the war against Ukraine, citing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, and issued an order for them to participate in combat operations alongside Russian forces.
Kim Jong Un also said that a monument will soon be erected in Pyongyang to "praise their heroism and bravery" and flowers will be laid at the "tombstones of fallen soldiers". This is also the first confirmation that there are casualties on the North Korean side.
The KCNA report contains a lot of criticism of Ukraine. It calls it the "vanguard of imperialist states" and accuses it of "turning many residential areas into ruins and killing many civilians".
The US State Department reacted to this news. It called on Pyongyang to stop deploying its troops in Russia, and on Moscow to stop supporting the DPRK. The US State Department is concerned about the direct involvement of the North Korean military in the war and holds the DPRK responsible for the hostilities.
A State Department spokesman also stated that Russian training for the North Korean military violates numerous UN Security Council resolutions that prohibit providing or receiving military assistance to or from the DPRK.
Participation of the DPRK military in the war in Ukraine
A few days ago, on April 26, Russia also officially acknowledged for the first time the participation of North Korean troops in the war against Ukraine. At that time, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov said that the Russian military had allegedly "completely liberated" the Kursk region from the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
At the same time, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine noted as of the evening of April 27 that 21 clashes had occurred in the Kursk direction during the day, and several battles were still ongoing.
- Ukrainian intelligence reported on October 24, 2024, that the first soldiers from the DPRK had arrived at the front in the Kursk region. There were approximately 12 000 soldiers, including 500 officers and three generals.
- In late December 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that more than 3 000 soldiers from the DPRK had already been killed or wounded. South Korean intelligence estimates that 300 soldiers were killed and nearly 2 700 were wounded in the war.
- Zelensky first reported on December 27, 2024, that the Defense Forces had captured North Korean soldiers, but then they died of wounds. The North Korean soldiers were captured for the second time in January 2025. Ukraine is ready to exchange them for its own soldiers.
For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine please follow us on X.