North Korean soldiers have been “brought in again” to fight at the frontline in the Kursk region after reports that foreign soldiers were withdrawn following their mounting losses, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said.

North Korean soldiers had been missing from combat, fueling speculation they were pulled back after taking heavy losses.

This is almost certainly primarily due to heavy losses sustained during attacks against Ukrainian-held positions.” Reports differ on the scale of the losses but one put them as high as 4,000 North Korean soldiers killed or wounded.