Two wounded North Korean soldiers have been captured as prisoners of war by Ukrainian troops in Russia's Kursk region, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday.
The two men are receiving “necessary medical attention” and are in the custody of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in Kyiv, according to Zelensky.
The president said he was “grateful” to Ukrainian paratroopers and Special Operations Forces soldiers for capturing the North Koreans.
He added that “this is not an easy task,” claiming that Russian and North Korean soldiers routinely execute wounded North Koreans “to erase any evidence of North Korea's involvement in the war against Ukraine.”
In a statement published on Telegram and X, Zelensky said the soldiers had “spoken with SBU investigators” and he had instructed the Security Service of Ukraine to grant journalists access to them.
“The world needs to know the truth about what is happening,” he added.
Zelensky also published photos of two wounded men, but did not provide evidence that they were North Korean.
One image shows a Russian army ID card issued to a 26-year-old man from Russia's Tiwa region, bordering Mongolia.
According to some reports, Russia is hiding North Korean fighters by giving them fake identity documents.
In December, South Korea's intelligence agency reported that North Korean soldier believed to be first captured while supporting Russia's war in Ukraine dies after being captured alive by Ukrainian forces.
Separately, the White House said North Korean forces were suffering mass casualties.