South Korea's spy agency said Friday that an injured North Korean soldier captured while fighting for Russia against Ukrainian forces has since died of his wounds, the Yonhap news agency reported.
The soldier is said to be the first North Korean to be taken prisoner by Ukraine.
CNN has contacted South Korea's National Intelligence Service and Ukrainian authorities for comment.
North Korean forces are believed to have suffered heavy losses during the battle for Moscow in Russia's western Kursk region, according to US and Ukrainian officials. Ukraine launched its lightning raid on Kursk in August, forcing Russia to divert troops to deal with the threat.
Seoul's spy agency said Friday it received information about the capture “through real-time intelligence sharing with allies,” but did not mention any country by name.
Neither Moscow nor Pyongyang have officially recognized the presence of North Korean troops in Russia.
However, U.S., Ukrainian and South Korean intelligence estimates put the number of North Korean soldiers in Russia at between 11,000 and 12,000, some of whom have already been involved in combat operations alongside tens of thousands of Russian forces to assist in the reconquest of parts of Kursk.
Ukraine estimates that more than 3,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed or wounded in Kursk, while a senior US official said North Korea has seen “several hundred” casualties – both dead and wounded – in the region since October.
A South Korean lawmaker said about 100 North Korean soldiers have been killed and nearly 1,000 injured since their deployment to Kursk, citing the country's intelligence agency.
Officials in Kiev have accused Russia of trying to cover up the involvement of North Korean soldiers on the battlefield.
Earlier this month, the Ukrainian military said documents seized from three North Korean soldiers killed in Kursk were fake military identification documents with Russian names and birthplaces.
Zelensky has said that Russia is trying to hide the losses of North Korean troops on the battlefield and is resorting to extreme tactics to conceal the identities of North Korean soldiers killed in the battle.
“Russians are trying… literally to burn the faces of North Korean soldiers killed in battle,” Zelensky said in a statement on X on December 17, alongside a video allegedly showing Russian soldiers burning the bodies of North Korean soldiers stiches.
“There is a risk that North Korea will send additional troops and military equipment to the Russian army,” Zelensky said after receiving a report from Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces.
On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, writing that the two countries will continue to implement the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty they signed in June. media reported.
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