Key developments on Oct. 25:
- Russia to deploy North Korean troops to combat zone on Oct. 27-28, Zelensky says
- Russia has suffered 17,800 casualties since start of Kursk incursion, Syrskyi claims
- Russia 'not planning any concessions,' Putin says on peace talks with Ukraine
- Poland rules out transferring recently-purchased South Korean weapons to Ukraine
- Ukraine strikes Russian Buk air defenses, destroys radar guidance system
Russia is planning to send first North Korean soldiers to combat zone on Oct. 27-28, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Oct. 25, citing intelligence reports.
Speaking after a regular meeting with his top military and civilian officials, Zelensky called the move an "obvious step toward escalation" that stands in contrast to "disinformation we heard from the Kremlin in recent days."
"The world can clearly see what Russia really wants, and that is to continue the war. That is why we need a principled and strong reaction from the world's leaders," Zelensky said.
The president called on the West to put "tangible pressure" on both Moscow and Pyongyang to comply with the U.N. Charter and punish escalation.
North Korea has sent nearly 12,000 troops to Russia, including 500 officers and three generals, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) said.
The first soldiers to participate alongside Russian forces in the war against Ukraine have been reportedly sent to Kursk Oblast, where Ukraine began a cross-border incursion in August and still holds significant swathes of territory.
Zelensky also said after the meeting that Ukraine had established a buffer zone in Kursk Oblast that prevents Russia from expanding the war to further Ukrainian territories in the east.
Following multiple reports by Ukraine and South Korea, the U.S. acknowledged that North Korean troops were arriving in Russia.
"What exactly they are doing remains to be seen," said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, leaving room for doubt.
In return for the transfer of soldiers and arms, Russia is helping Pyongyang evade sanctions and develop its nuclear capabilities, according to HUR chief Kyrylo Budanov.
Chris York
Russia has suffered 17,800 casualties since start of Kursk incursion, Syrskyi claims
Ukrainian forces have killed, injured, or captured 17,819 Russian soldiers in Kursk Oblast since the first days of Kyiv's incursion, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi claimed on Oct. 25.
According to the general, a total of 6,662 Russian troops have been killed, 10,446 wounded, and 711 captured since Aug. 8.
Ukraine launched its cross-border incursion into Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6, claiming to initially seize some 1,300 square kilometers (500 square miles) but recently facing mounting pressure as Russia pulls in reinforcements.
Syrskyi refuted Russian President Vladimir Putin's claims made during the BRICS summit in Kazan on Oct. 24 that about 2,000 Ukrainian troops were cut off in Kursk Oblast.
"This is outright disinformation that does not reflect the real situation," Syrskyi said.
"Ukrainian troops continue active operations in the Kursk direction, destroying the enemy's combat potential for the third month in a row."
The Kyiv Independent could not verify these claims.
The reports came days after the first North Korean soldiers had been reportedly deployed alongside Russian forces on the front line in Kursk Oblast. North Korea has sent nearly 12,000 troops to Russia, including 500 officers and three generals, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia was planning to send first North Korean soldiers to a combat zone on Oct. 27-28.
Russia 'not planning any concessions,' Putin says on peace talks with Ukraine
Any peace agreement to end Russia's war with Ukraine must be in Moscow's favor, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with state media on Oct. 25.
Ahead of Ukraine's first peace summit in June, Putin had outlined conditions for negotiations, which included Kyiv's surrender of the four oblasts illegally claimed by Moscow in September 2022. Russia has since said it will not engage in talks as long as Ukrainian forces remain in Kursk Oblast.
"Any outcome must be in Russia's favor, I say directly, without any embarrassment, and must be based on the realities on the battlefield. And without any doubt, we are not going to make any concessions here; there will be no swaps," Putin said.
At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine and Russia held talks in Istanbul in March 2022, but the negotiations were eventually abandoned after Ukrainian retook the north of the country and mass war crimes were discovered in the liberated areas.
In comments to Ukraine's Peace Summit in June this year, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Istanbul talks failed because of the Russian side's "ultimatums."
Moscow was not invited to the June summit in Switzerland, attended by over 90 countries, dismissing the discussions as irrelevant without its involvement. Following the event, Zelensky expressed hope for a follow-up meeting by the end of the year, with the goal of including Russia.
Yet, Moscow announced it would not participate in any future iterations of the Swiss-hosted peace summit, labeling the process a "fraud."
James Beardsworth
Poland rules out transferring recently-purchased South Korean weapons to Ukraine
Polish President Andrzej Duda denied the possibility of transferring to Kyiv weapons systems Warsaw purchased from South Korea, Polish media RMF24 reported on Oct. 25.
South Korean law prohibits the exporting of weapons to active conflict zones, but Seoul has repeatedly hinted that this could change in light of deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea.
Duda said he had talked to Kyiv about the possible transfer of South Korean weapons but that his response to the allies was "unequivocal."
"There is no scenario in which we hand over weapons that we have recently bought for billions of zlotys from the pockets of our taxpayers. These weapons must serve the security and defense of the Republic of Poland," Duda said during his visit to South Korea.
If Seoul agrees to supply Ukraine with weapons, it will not be from the stockpile intended for Poland, Duda added.
North Korea has sent nearly 12,000 troops to Russia, including 500 officers and three generals, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) said.
The first soldiers to participate alongside Russian forces in the war against Ukraine have been reportedly sent to Kursk Oblast, where Ukraine began a cross-border incursion in August and still holds significant swathes of territory.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Oct. 25 that Russia is planning to send the first North Korean soldiers to the combat zone on Oct. 27-28.
In return for the transfer of soldiers and arms, Russia is helping Pyongyang evade sanctions and develop its nuclear capabilities, according to HUR chief Kyrylo Budanov.
Martin Fornusek
Ukraine strikes Russian Buk air defenses, destroys radar guidance system
Ukrainian forces destroyed radar guidance equipment of a Buk-M2 air defense system and struck a Buk-M3 system overnight on Oct. 25 in the occupied part of Luhansk Oblast, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said.
The attack was carried out by Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces and other military units. The General Staff did not elaborate on other possible damage apart from the destroyed guidance system.
The Russian targets were hit "several dozens of kilometers behind the front line," the statement read.
Buk is a family of self-propelled, medium-range air defense systems developed in the 1970s in the Soviet Union. The Buk-M2 and M3 are modernized variants, capable of shooting down aerial targets like tactical ballistic missiles at a range of 50 and 65 kilometers, respectively (30 and 40 miles).
Russian proxy forces used a Buk missile to shoot down the MH17 Malaysian airliner over Donetsk Oblast on July 17, 2014, in the early months of the Donbas War.
Ukraine previously destroyed a Buk-M3 system overnight on Oct. 21, the military said.
Ukrainian forces have destroyed 982 Russian anti-aircraft systems throughout the full-scale war, the General Staff said in its regular morning report on Oct. 25.
Asami Terajima
