Kim praises North Korean soldiers who blew themselves up to evade Ukraine capture
Source: The Guardian and agencies
Kim praises North Korean soldiers who blew themselves up to evade Ukraine capture
Leader mentions for first time lengths to which troops go to avoid falling into enemy hands while fighting for Russia
Luke Harding in Dnipro and agencies
Wed 29 Apr 2026 12.34 BST
Last modified on Wed 29 Apr 2026 13.21 BST
Kim Jong-un has praised North Korean soldiers who blew themselves up with grenades in order to avoid capture while fighting Ukrainian forces in Russia’s western Kursk region, confirming the existence of the extreme battlefield policy.
Mounting evidence, including from intelligence reports and testimonies of defectors, has indicated North Korean soldiers are explicitly told to resort to self-detonation or other forms of suicide to avoid falling into enemy hands.
In 2024, North Korea sent about 14,000 elite troops to join Russia’s war against Ukraine. The soldiers were sent into battle around the border town of Sudzha, which Ukrainian forces captured that summer in a surprise mini counter-invasion. According to South Korean and Ukrainian officials, more than 6,000 North Koreans were killed in intense fighting.
Two North Koreans were captured and are being held as prisoners of war in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. Both had tried to blew themselves up but had been unable to do so because of their severe injuries. One of them has expressed guilt at his failure to carry out orders, it is understood.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/29/kim-north-korea-soldiers-blow-themselves-up-ukraine
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