The Pentagon as well has Ukraine's military intelligence have said that some of the first North Korean troops fighting alongside Russian forces in Russia's Kursk border region have been killed. Dozens of the foreign troops are reportedly dead and wounded.
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, the GUR, announced Monday that North Korean army units were beset with "significant losses" of "at least 30 soldiers" killed and wounded in the Kursk region over the weekend, in a significant first if confirmed.
The intense fighting and losses were said to be in the villages of Plekhovo, Vorobzha and Martynovka. "Also in the area of the village of Kurilovka, at least three North Korean servicemen went missing," the GUR wrote on Telegram.
Kiev was the first to make the claim, but there's been no comment from the Kremlin or Pyongyang; however, in a rarity the Pentagon has chimed in to say there are "indications" of casualties among North Korean troops in Russia. According to NY Times:
The Pentagon has seen “indications” that the North Korean forces who have been sent to Russia to help the Kremlin in its war against Ukraine have suffered their first casualties, according to a U.S. official.
Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon spokesman, told reporters on Monday that the North Koreans had entered combat last week in the Russian region of Kursk.
Ryder continued, "We do assess that North Korean soldiers have engaged in combat in Kursk." He added: "We do have indications that they have suffered casualties, both killed and wounded."