Zelenskyy earlier said Ukraine had taken two North Korean soldiers captive from Russia’s Kursk region
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Kyiv is ready to hand over captured North Korean troops to their leader Kim Jong Un if they can arrange exchanges with Ukrainians imprisoned in Russia.
“There will undoubtedly be more to come after the first captured North Korean soldier,” Zelenskyy said on social media on Sunday. Our soldiers will take others prisoners. It’s just a matter of time. ”
Earlier on Saturday, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had taken two North Korean soldiers captive from Russia’s Kursk region.
North Korean troops joined the nearly three-year-old war in Ukraine last fall. It is the first time since then that Ukraine has captured North Korean soldiers alive.
According to Ukrainian and Western estimates, about 11,000 troops from North Korea have been deployed to the Kursk region to reinforce Russian forces. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied the presence of North Korean troops on its soil.
Zelenskyy claimed that Russian and North Korean troops had suffered heavy losses in Kursk.
“If Kim Jong Un can arrange the exchange of his troops with our fighters held in Russian captivity, Ukraine is ready to hand them over to him,” he said. ”
Zelenskyy released a short video in which two people were portrayed as North Korean soldiers were being questioned. One of them was lying on a bed with a bandage on his arm. The other was sitting with a bandage on his jaw.
