South Korea’s intelligence agency has confirmed Ukrainian reports that an injured North Korean soldier has been captured by Ukrainian forces, in what could be the first such incident since Pyongyang sent military personnel to reinforce Russian forces in the war in Ukraine.
The National Intelligence Service of South Korea said in a statement on Friday: “Through real-time information sharing with the intelligence agency of an allied country, it has been confirmed that an injured North Korean soldier was captured.”
A photo of the North Korean soldier, who appeared weakened and injured, circulated on the messaging app Telegram, according to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency. Details about the soldier’s condition or status are not yet known, The Guardian reports, citing Gazeta Express.
The claim emerged after Ukrainian media outlet Militarnyi reported that special forces had captured the soldier in the Kursk region of Russia, where several areas have been captured and held during a Ukrainian incursion.
The newspaper did not specify when the incident occurred, and there has been no confirmation from officials in Ukraine or North Korea, where state media has not mentioned the deployment of troops there.
Militarnyi said that if confirmed, the soldier would be the first North Korean combatant to be captured by Ukrainian forces.
Around 11,000 North Korean soldiers have been deployed to assist their Russian counterparts, several months after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a mutual defense pact that committed each country to assist the other if attacked.
