President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has shared the first video of the interrogation of North Korean soldiers captured in Russia’s Kursk Oblast and stated that Ukraine is ready to return them to their home country as part of a prisoner exchange with Russia.

Source: Zelenskyy on Facebook

Quote:"In addition to the first captured soldiers from North Korea, there will undoubtedly be more. It’s only a matter of time before our troops manage to capture others. There should be no doubt left in the world that the Russian army is dependent on military assistance from North Korea. Putin started three years ago with ultimatums to NATO and attempts to rewrite history, but now he cannot manage without military support from Pyongyang.

Ukraine is ready to hand over Kim Jong Un’s soldiers to him if he can organise their exchange for our warriors who are being held captive in Russia.

For those North Korean soldiers who do not wish to return, there may be other options available. In particular, those who express a desire to bring peace closer by spreading the truth about this war in Korean will be given that opportunity."

Details: When one of the prisoners is questioned if he realised he was fighting against Ukraine, he shakes his head in denial. As the interpreter translated, the prisoner was told he was merely going for training.

The prisoner originally expressed a desire to remain in Ukraine, but subsequently stated that he would "do as he is ordered". The interpreter explained, "If he has to return, he will. If given the chance, he will stay here."

Another North Korean prisoner nodded affirmatively when asked if he wanted to return to North Korea.

Background:

• On 11 January, President Zelenskyy and the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) reported that Ukrainian soldiers captured two North Korean servicemen in Russia’s Kursk Oblast.
• Special Operations Forces (SOF) released footage of the capture and evacuation of one North Korean soldier from Russia. The other was shown by Ukraine’s Air Assault Forces.
• Russian media reported that a forged military ID found on one of the North Korean POWs in Kursk Oblast was issued under the name of a real resident of Russia's Tuva Republic.

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