Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday that Russia has begun deploying North Korean soldiers to storm Ukrainian positions in the Kursk region.
Zelensky said in his evening address that he had "preliminary evidence that the Russians have begun to use soldiers from North Korea in assaults -- a noticeable number of them".
He said that according to his information, "the Russians include (North Koreans) in combined units and use them in operations in the Kursk region", where Ukraine has been mounting an incursion since August.
Zelensky said he has also heard the North Koreans "may be used in other parts of the front line", and that "losses among this category are also already noticeable".
Read moreFrom isolation to battlefield: North Korean troops could face reality check in Ukraine
Zelensky said last month that 11,000 North Korean troops were in Russia's western Kursk region and had already sustained "losses".
Washington and Seoul have accused Pyongyang of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help Moscow, after Russia and North Korea signed a landmark defence pact this summer.
Read moreWhat do we know about the North Korean soldiers fighting for Russia?
North Korea and Russia have strengthened their military ties since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Taken by surprise by the Kursk incursion, Russia has since steadily clawed back territory, halting Ukraine's advance and rushing reinforcements to the region.
A Ukrainian army source told AFP last month Kyiv still controlled 800 square kilometres (300 square miles) of the Kursk region, down from previous claims it controlled almost 1,400 square kilometres.
(AFP)