Some 50,000 Russian and North Korean soldiers deployed in the Russian region of Kursk have recently entered combat against Ukrainian forces, a senior official in Kyiv told Japanese news agency Kyodo Wednesday.

North Korean soldiers deployed to the Kursk region of Russia have begun combat operations against Ukrainian troops, the U.S. State Department confirmed Tuesday.

North Korean troops have begun engaging in combat operations alongside Russian forces, the U.S. State Department said on Tuesday, expressing concern that Russia had turned to North Korea for soldiers to fight in its war with Ukraine.

The Russian counteroffensive in western Russia’s Kursk Oblast is off to a bloody and chaotic start. After six days, Ukrainian drone operator Kriegsforscher has identified 77 destroyed Russian armored vehicles along the northwestern edge of the 250-square-mile salient Ukrainian troops occupy in Kursk.

The Ukrainian defence forces have left a record number of Russian forces killed and wounded - 1,950. Also, they destroyed 81 Russian armoured vehicles. Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook Details: The total combat losses of the Russian forces between 24 February 2022 and 12 November 2024 are estimated to be as follows [figures in parentheses represent the latest losses - ed.