North Korean Troops Engage Ukrainians in Battle in Russia’s Kursk: Reports

North Korean troops have seized their first village from Ukrainian soldiers in Russia’s Kursk region, according to reports.

Between December 6 and 7, North Korean soldiers captured the village of Plekhovo, which had a prewar population of 627. More than 300 Ukrainian soldiers were reportedly killed in the attack.

“Plekhovo was taken exclusively by special operations forces of North Korea. In two hours, they passed through like a hurricane, did not take prisoners. The enemy lost more than 300 servicemen,” the Telegram channel “Romanov Light” reported.

“Now two brigades are trying to share the laurels – who was the first to enter the settlement liberated by Korean specialists.” Newsweek has been unable to independently verify the reports.

North Korean soldiers taking part in a ceremony in Pyongyang in 2017. North Korean soldiers have allegedly captured a village from Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk region.
North Korean soldiers taking part in a ceremony in Pyongyang in 2017. North Korean soldiers have allegedly captured a village from Ukrainian troops in Russia’s Kursk region.
Iliya Pitalev/Associated Press

Yuri Kotenok, a Russian military blogger, also reported on Telegram: “Plekhovo, liberated on December 6 in the Kursk direction, was indeed taken by fighters of the Korean special forces. They walked two kilometers through a minefield, broke into the village with lightning speed and destroyed the occupation contingent of the Ukrovermacht.

“The operation took about 2.5 hours. They took their ‘200’ and ‘300’ with them. According to some information, there were no prisoners. They will not take them in the future either.”

Newsweek contacted Ukraine and Russia’s ministries of defense, and the North Korean embassy in the UK, for comment via email.

Meanwhile, the news outlet First Source Report posted video of the aftermath of the alleged battle. “Allegedly the footage of North Korean soldiers evacuating their wounded from the village of Plekhovo in the Kursk region,” it wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“According to other sources, the footage shows fighters from the 810th Marine Brigade, not soldiers from the DPRK (which does not exclude the possibility of North Koreans participating in the Marine Brigade).”

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported there was fighting in the Kursk region on December 12, and said that geolocated footage from December 11 indicated that Russian forces had advanced north-west of Plekhovo and recaptured the village.

The Washington D.C. think tank also reported that Russian forces had recaptured two other villages in the Kursk region, Darino and Novoivanovka, on December 12.

The U.S. confirmed that North Korean soldiers had been deployed to support Russia’s war against Ukraine in October. These soldiers were first reported to have engaged in combat against Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region in early November.

The Pentagon said in November that around 10,000 North Korean troops were believed to be in the Kursk region, and between 11,000 and 12,000 in Russia overall.