The Russian army has fully liberated the border Kursk region from Ukrainian control with the help of North Korean soldiers, Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov said on Saturday, admitting their participation in the conflict for the first time.
Gerasimov especially hailed the “heroism” of the North Korean soldiers taking part in the operation, who “provided significant assistance in defeating the group of Ukrainian armed forces”.
But the Ukrainian army denied Russia’s assertion that Kyiv’s forces had been driven out of Kursk, saying that “statements by the enemy leadership about the ‘defeat’ of the Ukrainian troops are nothing more than propaganda tricks”.
However, the Ukrainian Chief of Staff acknowledged the situation on the battlefield was “difficult”, while insisting Ukrainian forces were still holding positions in Kursk.
The Ukrainian army said it was also continuing operations in some areas of Belgorod, another Russia’s border region.
According to South Korean and Western intelligence agencies, more than 10,000 soldiers from North Korea were sent to Russia last year to help Moscow fight Ukraine’s shock offensive in Kursk.
