Ukraine Claims Russia and North Korea Forces Sustain Heavy Losses in Battle near Kursk
Kyiv – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated that Russian and North Korean (DPRK) forces have suffered significant losses in combat in the southern Russian region of Kursk. He reported that Russia has lost an entire battalion.
Zelenskiy, citing a report from Ukrainian high commander Oleksandr Syrskyi, mentioned that clashes occurred near the village of Makhnovka, not far from the Ukrainian border. According to the Ukrainian president, there have been around 11,000 DPRK soldiers deployed in the Kursk region. Ukrainian forces have captured most of the area following their massive cross-border offensive in August 2024.
"In yesterday’s and today’s battles near one village, Makhnovka, in the Kursk region, Russian forces lost up to an entire DPRK infantry battalion and Russian airborne troops," Zelenskiy said. He did not provide specific casualty figures, and Reuters could not independently verify his statement.
Last week, Zelenskiy also reported heavy DPRK casualties in the Kursk region. He claimed that DPRK forces were not protected by the Russian troops fighting alongside them. He added that DPRK civilians took extreme measures to avoid capture, with some soldiers being executed by their own forces.
In his latest statement, Zelenskiy said "intense fighting" was ongoing along the 1,000 km front line, with the toughest situation near the city of Pokrovsk. He mentioned that Russian forces continued to deploy large numbers of their own personnel in attacks. According to a Ukrainian military spokesperson, Pokrovsk remains the hottest sector on the front line.
Russian forces persistently launch new attacks near the city in an attempt to bypass it from the south and cut off supply routes to Ukrainian forces. Pokrovsk, which was home to a mine that was the sole supplier of coal to Ukraine’s once-giant steel industry, had a population of around 60,000 people before the war. Ukraine estimates that about 11,000 remain in the city.
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(haf/imk)