After Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed they were being interrogated, South Korea’s regional intelligence service confirmed on Sunday that Ukraine had taken two seriously North Vietnamese soldiers this week in Russia.
” The NIS, through real-time cooperation with Ukraine’s intelligence agency ( SBU) has identified battlefield situations, including the capture of North Korean soldiers, and confirmed that the Ukrainian military captured two North Korean soldiers on January 9 in the Kursk battlefield in Russia”, the National Intelligence Service ( NIS ) said in a statement.
Kyiv, the United States and South Korea have accused nuclear-armed North Korea of sending more than 10, 000 soldiers to help Russia combat Ukraine.
AFP was unable to individually verify the men’s ethnicity because Kyiv on Saturday did not provide clear proof that the captured people were North Koreans.
However, neither Russia nor North Korea have responded, so the North Korean assurance gives Kyiv’s account more weight.
One of the captured military, according to the NIS, testified during his investigation that he had received military training from Russian troops after arriving it in November.
” He first believed he was being sent for education, realising upon arrival in Russia that he had been deployed”, the NIS said.
The man claimed that” significant losses were made during the battle” by North Vietnamese forces.
One man claimed he was sent to Russia for education, not to fight, and that the men had also told the SBU that they had told the torturers they were experienced military soldiers.
The NIS stated that it would continue to collaborate with the SBU to provide details on North Vietnamese soldiers stationed in Ukraine.
