South Korea confirms North Korean troops not engaged in Kursk battles

South Korea's National Intelligence Service has confirmed that North Korean troops have not been engaged in battles in Russia's Kursk Oblast for several weeks, according to Yonhap News Agency.

"Since mid-January, there have been no signs showing North Korean troops deployed to the Russian Kursk [Oblast] engaging in battle," the intelligence service stated.

The revelation corroborates a report by The New York Times that North Korean forces were pulled back from the frontline in Russia due to heavy losses among North Korean soldiers. The exact reason is still being determined, the intelligence service noted.

According to South Korean estimates, North Korea sent 11,000 soldiers to fight against Ukraine in Russia. Of these, approximately 300 were killed, and around 2,700 were wounded.

On January 21, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that out of 12,000 North Korean military personnel in Kursk Oblast, 4,000 soldiers had been killed.

On January 29, the National Security and Defense Council's Center for Countering Disinformation stated that North Korean military personnel in Kursk Oblast were conducting a "review of mistakes" with Russian commanders and their own officers, but it was too early to say they would not resume active participation in the war.

On January 31, Newsweek reported that North Korean soldiers were faking tuberculosis to avoid being sent to the frontline in Russia.

On February 2, Zelenskyy announced that Russia and North Korea had lost dozens of officers due to a strike by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Kursk Oblast.