How Ukraine Captured a North Korean POW, Told by the Soldiers Who Participated

Editor’s note: In accordance with Ukrainian military security protocols, soldiers featured in this story are identified only by their first names and callsigns.

It was a month-long mission with one primary objective: to capture a North Korean soldier alive.

One of the biggest obstacles facing the Ukrainian forces charged with this objective during their operations in Russia’s Kursk Oblast was overcoming the fanatical and suicidal zeal instilled in Pyongyang’s troops.

“(A North Korean soldier) was about to be taken prisoner, but with the words ‘Glory to the Party’ or ‘Glory to Kim Jong-un,’ he blew himself up with a grenade,” said a soldier of the Ukrainian special operations forces. said the callsign “Borsuk” to the kyiv Independent.

The mission finally succeeded earlier this month with the capture of a North Korean soldier by special operations forces and another by Ukrainian airborne forces. President Volodymyr Zelensky called their capture “irrefutable proof” of Pyongyang’s involvement in the Kremlin’s full-scale war.

According to Ukraine, North Korea has deployed around 12,000 troops in Kursk Oblast, where kyiv launched a surprise cross-border incursion in August 2024.

Neither Russia nor North Korea has officially recognized the deployment, which is the latest step in Moscow’s ever-increasing – and humiliating – dependence on Pyongyang to bolster its army, after long deliveries of artillery shells and ballistic missiles.

“Essentially, it was about making the international community understand that third countries are indeed involved in this war. And that Russia is not as invincible as they claim,” Borsuk said.

The Kyiv Independent obtained exclusive footage of the mission and interviewed Borsuk and his comrade “Bernard,” who described how they accomplished their task, the moment of their capture and why North Korean troops are far more formidable than their Russian counterparts. .

'He still had a grenade with him'

To definitively prove North Korea’s involvement, capturing one of its soldiers alive was the only option.

Although Borsuk and Bernard could not disclose details of their preparation, timing, location or number of people involved in the mission, they revealed that they had been monitoring a specific area of ​​Kursk Oblast from a extended period, waiting for the perfect opportunity. act.

The enemy group operating in the monitored area was composed entirely of North Koreans, according to Ukrainian soldiers.

“We approached the target where we were supposed to operate. We had observed it and knew their base positions were there,” Bernard said.

“We started moving and contact was made.”

In the ensuing firefight, the enemy group suffered losses and began to retreat. An injured North Korean soldier was left behind.

“Our men kept him under constant fire control to make sure he didn’t move or make any sudden movements,” Borsuk says.

Once he approached his position, disarming him was a delicate and potentially fatal maneuver.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) previously reported that some North Korean soldiers were forced to commit suicide to avoid capture by Ukrainian forces.

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby also echoed the claims, adding that captured North Korean troops feared serious reprisals against their families if they surrendered.

“He always had a grenade with him, in addition to his weapon, and it was very difficult to remove it,” says Borsuk, describing the moment captured by the front camera when they approached the soldier.

Eventually, the North Korean soldier allowed them to approach and they were able to provide first aid.

Borsuk recalled that their prisoner had behaved “calmly” and judged him to be in stable condition.

“He was able to talk. The only problem he had was with his leg; everything else was normal,” he says.

According to Bernard, Russian artillery began firing shortly after reaching the North Korean soldier, likely realizing they were trying to take him prisoner.

“(Russia’s) desire to hide the presence of North Korean units was very great,” Borsuk explains.

“As (the blows) got closer, he also realized what was happening… It was clear in his eyes that he was human; after all, he wanted to live,” Bernard explains.

“We looked at him. Well, he was just a young man… There was no thought, no desire to use physical force, or anything like that,” Bernard says.

“We just saved him. And that’s it.”

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Better prepared than Russians

The two captured North Korean prisoners of war are currently in the custody of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in kyiv. Both were injured and reportedly received medical treatment.

One said he was born in 2005 and began serving as a rifleman in North Korea in 2021, while the other POW was born in 1999 and has served in the North Korean military since 2016 as a sniper reconnaissance officer.

Borsuk and Bernard say there are notable differences between the battlefield performance of North Korean and Russian soldiers.

“Compared to Russian soldiers, they are much better prepared physically and mentally. They are deliberately trained based on where they are going and what they are going to do,” says Borsuk.

“It’s clear that the Russians are not trying as hard. They (North Korean soldiers) can carry heavy loads, run long distances and survive much better in extreme conditions.”

Bernard suggests that they are better prepared because of their eight-year military service. However, when it comes to “more complex maneuvers,” North Korean soldiers have difficulty executing them effectively, he adds.

“Here, they can’t apply everything they were trained for because war is not the same as what they were told or shown,” Bernard explains.

According to Bernard, the North Koreans appear to be struggling to adapt to drones and aerial reconnaissance, both of which play a dominant role on the modern battlefield.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service previously claimed that at least 300 North Korean troops were killed and 2,700 others wounded in fighting in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, attributing their high losses to “lack of understanding of modern warfare” of soldiers, including their “uselessness” attempts to shoot down long-range drones.

Borsuk believes that the ratio of dead to injured among North Koreans is actually very different.

“They killed a lot more,” he says, adding that their coordination with Russian units is “clearly bad,” partly because of the language barrier.

However, North Korean soldiers also appear more motivated and resilient than Russian troops, according to Bernard.

“They seem very attached to their ideology. That’s why they’re loyal to their standards and what they’ve been told about who they are and what they should do. And they just can’t have it any other way.” , he said.

While Western officials, including US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, have described Russia’s use of North Korean troops as an indication of Moscow’s “growing desperation”, Borsuk says their use could potentially change the dynamic of the war.

“Imagine a battalion facing a force of up to 10,000 men,” says Borsuk. “They can throw battalion after battalion into the fight, and they have no shortage of personnel.”

This relentless tactic puts a strain on both Ukrainian soldiers and logistical support, as significant resources are needed to counter such waves, according to Borsuk.

“These actions generally bring only minimal results. However, it is not excluded that they could deploy a larger number of troops,” he says.

“Well, they come, they die, and that’s it,” Bernard said.

“It’s just that, maybe, we should be doing a slightly different job, but instead we’re focusing on eliminating them.”