Ukraine struggle briefing: Ukraine ‘captures two North Korean troopers in Russia’ | Ukraine

Ukraine stated it was interrogating two North Korean troopers after capturing the pair in Russia’s Kursk area – the primary time it has introduced the seize of North Korean troopers alive since their entry into the struggle final 12 months. The president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, stated on X on Saturday the troopers had been captured by Ukraine’s particular forces and had been being interrogated by the SBU home intelligence company in Kyiv. The SBU launched a video exhibiting the 2 males in hospital bunks, one with bandaged arms and the opposite with a bandaged jaw. It stated their questioning was being executed in Korean with the assistance of South Korea’s NIS intelligence company. Neither Russia nor North Korea instantly reacted to the announcement.

The SBU stated the 2 captured North Korean males had informed interrogators they had been skilled troopers, and one stated he was despatched to Russia for coaching, to not battle. It stated one PoW carried a Russian army ID card “issued within the title of one other individual” whereas the opposite had no paperwork. The SBU confirmed an ID issued to a 26-year-old man from Russia’s Tyva area bordering Mongolia. The SBU added that he was a rifleman born in 2005 and had been within the North Korean military since 2021. The opposite man, who wrote his solutions due to his injured jaw, stated he was born in 1999, had joined the military in 2016 and was a scout sniper, the SBU stated.

South Korea’s intelligence company on Sunday backed up Ukraine’s account of getting captured the troopers. The NIS stated it had “confirmed that the Ukrainian army captured two North Korean troopers on 9 January within the Kursk battlefield in Russia”. It equally stated one of many captured troopers revealed throughout his interrogation that he obtained army coaching from Russia after arriving there in November. The soldier stated North Korean forces had skilled “vital losses throughout battle”, NIS stated. In response to the NIS, one of many males “went with out meals or water for 4 to 5 days earlier than being captured”.

Zelensyy stated it was troublesome to seize North Koreans alive as a result of “Russians and different North Korean troopers end off their wounded” to cowl up “proof of the participation of one other state, North Korea, within the struggle”. He stated he would offer media entry to the prisoners of struggle as a result of “the world must know what is occurring”. Ukraine’s overseas minister, Andriy Sybiga, wrote on-line: “We want most stress towards regimes in Moscow and Pyongyang.”

Russia stated its military had gained management of a village close to the jap Ukrainian logistical centre of Pokrovsk, a key goal in its advance by the Donetsk area. Ukraine’s army made no point out of the village of Shevchenko in its newest account of frontline exercise, however stated Russia had launched greater than 50 assaults towards its forces’ positions close to Pokrovsk prior to now 24 hours. The Russian army report stated its troops launched strikes with plane, drones and missiles on Ukrainian army airfields and vitality infrastructure that service its military. Ukraine’s common workers stated its forces repelled 46 of 56 Russian assaults round a few dozen cities within the Pokrovsk sector. Ten clashes had been persevering with. The governor of the a part of Donetsk area held by Ukrainian forces, Vadym Filashkin, stated one resident was killed and 4 injured when a village north of Pokrovsk got here underneath Russian shelling.

Russia launched 74 drones at Ukraine in a single day, Kyiv’s air drive stated early on Saturday, including it had downed 47 of them, whereas 27 others disappeared from radar with out reaching their targets. The air drive stated buildings and autos in seven completely different areas had been broken by falling particles from downed drones, however there have been no casualties.

Ukraine launched drone assaults throughout a number of areas of Russia, hanging two homes within the Tambov area and injuring a number of folks, Russia stated on Saturday. Ukraine denies attacking civilian targets in Russia. The regional head, Evgeny Pervyshov, stated on Telegram that individuals had been handled for injures ensuing from shattered home windows as drones hit two homes within the city of Kotovsk, 480km (300 miles) south-east of Moscow. The Russian defence ministry stated it intercepted and destroyed 85 Ukrainian drones in a single day in a number of areas of the nation, together with 31 drones over the Black Sea, 16 every within the Voronezh and Krasnodar areas and 14 over the Azov Sea.

Vladimir Putin awarded Russia’s highest honour for bravery on Saturday to Cpl Andrei Grigoryev after a broadly posted video confirmed him killing a Ukrainian opponent in hand-to-hand fight. Ukrainian media recognized the soldier killed as Dmytro Maslovsky from the southern Odesa area.