North Korean soldiers in Ukraine taking their own lives to avoid capture, US says

The ongoing deployment of North Korean soldiers by Russia in the Ukraine conflict has taken a grim turn, with reports indicating that some of the soldiers are choosing suicide over the possibility of capture by Ukrainian forces.

According to John Kirby, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, these suicides are driven by fears of reprisals against their families in North Korea should they be captured by the enemy, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

“These suicides were likely out of fear of reprisal against their families in North Korea in the event that they’re captured,” Kirby explained, shedding light on the extreme pressures faced by the North Korean troops.

The tragic reality for the North Korean soldiers is compounded by their difficult and dangerous conditions in the ongoing conflict. South Korea’s National Intelligence Service confirmed that one North Korean soldier who was captured by Ukrainian forces had died from his injuries.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that at least 3,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed or wounded in the Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces launched a rapid incursion in August. Despite these high casualties, Russia has increased its military presence in a counteroffensive.

Kirby provided a lower death toll among North Korean soldiers, reporting that over 1,000 have died in the past week alone. This comes amid reports from Britain’s defence ministry that more than 1,500 Russian soldiers are wounded or killed daily, contributing to an estimated 45,000 casualties in November, the highest monthly toll since the conflict began.

To bolster its forces, Russia turned to its ally North Korea, which has deployed an estimated 11,000 soldiers to Ukraine, according to U.S. and allied estimates. Kirby explained that these North Korean troops are engaging in "massed, dismounted assaults against Ukrainian positions in Kursk," but these "human wave tactics" have been ineffective.

Despite their futile efforts, these soldiers have been described as “expendable” by Kirby, who noted that they are being sent on "hopeless assaults against Ukrainian defences." “These North Korean soldiers appear to be highly indoctrinated, pushing attacks even when it is clear that those attacks are futile,” he said.

The exact number of North Korean soldiers who have taken their own lives to avoid capture remains unclear. However, Zelenskyy noted that while several soldiers had been captured, they were "seriously wounded and could not be resuscitated," suggesting that some may have been killed by their own comrades to avoid being captured.

“These troops were being sent to fight with ‘minimal protection,’” Zelenskyy said, adding that the soldiers were suffering “a great deal” of losses. Despite the significant toll, Ukrainian forces have struggled to capture the soldiers alive. "Their own people are executing them," he added.