Key developments on March 17: * Russia claims capture of Stepove in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine denies * Ukrainian drones attack fuel facility in Russia's Astrakhan Oblast, governor claims * Ukrainian long-range drone successfully completes 3,000-kilometer test, Zelensky says * Territorial integrity, military size, alliances — FM Sybiha sets 3 'fundamentals' for potential peace talks
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and his Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha discussed the potential transfer of two North Korean POWs in a phone call.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, who supervised the launch, ordered the country's military to be in full nuclear strike readiness as "the most perfect deterrence and defence capacity."
North Korea has deployed additional troops to Russia, an official for South Korea's National Intelligence Agency claimed on Feb. 27.
Russian forces have ramped up attacks on Ukraine’s logistic networks in Kursk Oblast, further hampering the Ukrainian effort to hold on to the Russian territory it controls ahead of potential peace talks, analysts and soldiers on the ground told the Kyiv Independent. “The Russians have been on the offensive
The nuclear dimension has been a key aspect of the Russo-Ukrainian War since its onset in February 2014. Behavior in this war, not just of Moscow and Kyiv but of other states as well, has been conditioned by Russia’s possession and Ukraine’s lack of weapons of mass destruction.
This would mark the first time that the Russian munitions carrier Maia-1, sanctioned by the U.S. and the EU, entered European waters, the Financial Times noted.
Key developments on Feb. 19: * Trump calls Zelensky 'dictator,' warns of Ukraine's demise without elections * Reported drone strike against Russian oil refinery in Samara Oblast causes fire * Ukraine refutes Putin's claims of Russian offensive from Kursk Oblast * North Korean troops in Russia reportedly told they're fighting South Korean forces
One of the captured North Korean soldiers admitted that he and his fellow soldiers believed they were fighting South Korean troops, which heightened their morale and aggression, South Korean newspaper Chosun Daily reported.
"Only three countries — Ukraine, Russia, and North Korea — are gaining direct experience in full-scale 21st-century warfare," Kyrylo Budanov said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed that Moscow lost nearly 20,000 soldiers in the battles for Russia's Kursk Oblast alone.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky said the morale of Pyongyang's troops had been "broken" by the losses.
Key developments on Feb. 11: * Ukraine could trade territory in potential peace talks with Russia, Zelensky says * Ukraine strikes Russia's Saratov oil refinery, military confirms * US won't send troops to Ukraine, Pentagon chief says * North Korea has sent 200 long-range artillery guns to Russia, Seoul says * Ukrainian drones destroy Russian
Seoul further warned that Pyongyang is likely preparing to send additional troops and arms to back Russia's war in Ukraine, confirming earlier warnings by the Ukrainian intelligence.
Treatment for the Russian military in North Korea is provided free of charge in "the best hospitals and sanatoriums."
The move represents an apparent violation of U.N. resolutions prohibiting North Korea from sending its citizens to work overseas, which the Security Council passed after Pyongyang's intercontinental ballistic missile tests.
North Korea is expected to begin drone production this year with Russian technical assistance, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported on Feb. 8, citing undisclosed sources.
"A significant number of occupiers have been eliminated, we are re talking hundreds of Russian and North Korean servicemen," President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Kyiv is open to negotiating with South Korea over the possible transfer of captured North Korean soldiers, Ukrainian Ambassador to Seoul Dmytro Ponomarenko said in an interview with The Korea Times published on Feb. 5.
Analysts believe North Korea is using the battlefield as a testing ground for its missile technology, enhancing its weapons for future use.
The operation in Kursk Oblast may become an "important part" of future negotiations to end Russia's war, President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
Key developments on Feb. 4: * Nearly 8,000 North Korean soldiers still fighting in Kursk Oblast, Budanov says * Ukraine's strike on Russian command center in Kursk Oblast causes 'significant losses,' General Staff says * At least 5 killed, 55 injured in Russian missile strike on Izium in Kharkiv Oblast * Russia
Ukraine's military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov denied reports that North Korean soldiers have not been seen on the front line for weeks.
"Since mid-January, there have been no signs showing North Korean troops deployed to the Russian Kursk region engaging in battle," South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) said, suggesting that heavy losses may have been one of the reasons for their withdrawal.
"It was our military target, a fair one. There was a missile attack from our side and various types of weapons; a complex attack was launched against them," President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Associated Press on Feb. 2.
In an interview with the Associated Press on Feb. 2, Zelensky added that while these countries had previously cooperated on weapons and technology, they are now openly engaged in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Key developments on Jan. 31: * North Korean troops not seen for 3 weeks in parts of Kursk Oblast, Ukraine’s Special Forces say * Ukraine deploys long-range drone capable of 2,000 km strike, military says * Ukrainian drones strike "one of 10 largest oil refineries in Russia," military says * Russian missiles
"These are standard measures – rotation due to large casualties," a military intelligence source commented for the Kyiv Independent, confirming the reports.
Key developments on Jan. 27: * North Korean troops seem to temporarily withdraw from one section of front in Kursk Oblast, military says * Russia claims to capture Velyka Novosilka, Ukraine admits partial retreat but says battles ongoing * Russia intensifies attacks near Pokrovsk, seeks to encircle Ukrainian forces * Zelensky appoints Ground Forces
U.S. President Donald Trump needs to "understand where the threat is" and not "force Ukraine into a bad deal," U.K. lawmaker Iain Duncan Smith told the Kyiv Independent. In an interview in Kyiv alongside another U.K. lawmaker Layla Moran on Jan. 22, Duncan Smith urged Trump not
North Korean forces are taking respite from hostilities, presumably to treat the wounded, wait for reinforcements, and work on mistakes made during the fighting in this sector of the front, according to Sky News.
Kim Jong Un, who Trump lauded as a "smart guy," has become Russian President Vladimir Putin’s key ally in a war against Ukraine, providing ballistic missiles, artillery, and 12,000 troops.
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