North Korean troops banned from being captured

According to the National Intelligence Service of South Korea (NIS), North Korean soldiers deployed to Kursk Oblast were ordered to commit suicide in the event of a threat of capture by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. 

The order is attributed to high casualties among North Korean troops, which have amounted to approximately 300 killed and 2,700 wounded since the beginning of January.

Experts link these losses to a lack of understanding of modern warfare, including the ineffective use of small arms against long-range drones. This also indicates that some units of the North Korean army are unprepared for combat operations on foreign territory.

It was reported as early as October that North Korean troops could be stationed in Kursk Oblast, when Ukraine first made this claim. Later, these details were confirmed by both South Korean intelligence and the Pentagon, which stated that between 10,000 and 12,000 soldiers from the DPRK may be participating in military operations on the side of Russia. Since November 2024, they have been engaged in combat as part of the Russian armed forces.

On 11 January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the first case of North Korean soldiers being taken prisoner. In response, Ukraine proposed exchanging them for Ukrainian military personnel held captive by Russia.