North Korean troops accidentally killed eight Russian paramilitary soldiers in a “friendly fire” attack as they tried to take back Kursk from Ukraine, Kyiv officials said.
A Monday skirmish along the frontlines in the Kursk Oblast saw a group of North Korean troops target and fire at the Chechen Akhmat unit, killing eight of their allies, according to Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (GUR).
The friendly fire incident allegedly occurred due to the “language barrier” between Moscow and Pyongyang’s troops, as the more than 11,000 North Korean soldiers in Russia struggle to adapt to their new environment.
“When using the DPRK troops on the battlefield, the language barrier remains problematic to control and coordinate actions,” the GUR said in a statement.
“Because of this problem, North Korean soldiers opened ‘friendly fire’ on the vehicles of the so-called Akhmat battalion,” the agency added. “As a result, they killed eight Kadyrovite soldiers.”
The GUR’s assessment could not be immediately verified by independent reports.
The incident comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported a “significant number” of North Korean casualties in Kursk, where Kyiv has managed to hold onto a vast stretch of land following their surprise incursion over the summer.
At least 30 North Korean soldiers were killed and wounded in the weekend battles, forcing Moscow to deploy additional Pyongyang’s fighters in Kursk, according to the GUR.
The Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) detailed how Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) soldiers have recently assisted Russian troops in the Kursk Oblast, which is currently occupied by Ukrainian forces.
“The North Korean troops suffer sanitary and irreversible losses as a result of a successful fire attack by the Ukrainian Security and Defense Forces,” the GUR said of the battles.
“In particular, at one of the positions in the Kursk region, the DPRK army was effectively targeted by FPV drones,” the agency added.
Along with the dead and injured, at least three North Korean troops have gone missing around the village of Kurilovka, Ukraine officials added.
Footage shows North Korean troops on the frontline fighting for Vladimir Putin in Russia’s Kursk region, partially occupied by Ukraine. Khorne group/e2w news
Despite the losses, Zelensky warns that Russia will increase the number of North Korean soldiers deployed in Kursk, with intelligence suggesting the foreign troops could be sent to other locations along the frontlines.
“We will defend ourselves, including against these North Koreans,” Zelensky said.
“And we will continue to act in coordination with all our partners to stop this war — to stop it decisively, with guaranteed peace.”
