Reports have surfaced that North Korean soldiers deployed to Russia have already engaged in combat with Ukrainian forces, resulting in casualties.
On Oct. 28 (local time), Jonas Ohman, head of the Lithuanian NGO Blue/Yellow, which provides aid to Ukraine and its military, informed local media outlet LRT, stating, “The first encounter between a Ukrainian unit we support and North Korean soldiers occurred on the 25th in Kursk. To my knowledge, all of the North Korean soldiers, except for one, were killed. The surviving soldier was found carrying identification as a Buryat.”
Buryats are a Mongolian ethnic group indigenous to the Republic of Buryatia, a Russian republic located just north of Mongolia. Speculation has arisen that Russia may issue Buryat identification to North Korean soldiers to present them as Russian nationals.
Since 2014, Blue/Yellow has actively supported the Ukrainian military, often obtaining intelligence directly from Ukrainian military sources. Many of these reports have later been verified through official channels.
Ohman commented, “We have known for some time that North Korea was preparing to join the conflict in Ukraine. Initial indications surfaced six months ago when North Korean soldiers began training alongside local units in Belarus.”
He further noted, “There were also unverified reports of infiltration into Ukraine’s Donetsk region by small groups, including intelligence operatives and engineers. Several months ago, a drone strike supported by our organization marked the first reported North Korean casualty in Ukraine.”
Prior to this more extensive deployment, North Korea had reportedly sent personnel to Russia for quality control and training related to weaponry supplied to Moscow. Earlier, on Oct. 3, Ukrainian media reported that six North Korean officers were killed in a Ukrainian missile strike on the eastern front in Donetsk.
