Key developments for October 25:
Zelensky: Zelensky: Russia will deploy North Korean troops in combat zone on October 27-28.
Syrskyi claims that Russia has suffered 17,800 casualties from the start of the Kursk incursion.
* Putin: Russia is not planning any concessions in peace talks with Ukraine
Poland rejects the transfer of South Korean arms to Ukraine
* Ukraine strikes Russian Buk air defenses, destroys radar guidance system
Volodymyr Zelensky, the President of Russia, said on October 25 that Russia plans to send its first North Korean soldiers into combat zone between Oct. 27 and 28. He cited intelligence reports.
Zelensky, speaking after a meeting with his top military officials and civilian officials, called the move “an obvious step towards escalation,” which contrasts the “disinformation” we heard from the Kremlin over the past few days.
“The world knows what Russia wants and that’s to continue the war.” Zelensky said that we need a strong and principled reaction from world leaders.
The president called for the West to exert “tangible pressure” both on Moscow and Pyongyang in order to enforce the U.N. Charter, and punish any escalation.
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR), which has confirmed the report, said that North Korea sent nearly 12,000 soldiers to Russia, including 500 officers, three generals and 500 other troops.
The first soldiers who will join Russian forces in the war on Ukraine have reportedly been sent to Kursk Oblast. This is where Ukraine launched a cross-border invasion in August, and still controls large areas of territory.
Zelensky said that after the meeting, Ukraine had established a buffer area in Kursk Oblast to prevent Russia from expanding its war into further Ukrainian territory in the east.
The U.S. confirmed that North Korean troops had arrived in Russia after multiple reports from Ukraine and South Korea.
Lloyd Austin, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, said that it was unclear what exactly they were doing.
According to HUR chief Kyrylo Budaynov, Russia helps Pyongyang avoid sanctions and develop its nucleonic capabilities in exchange for the transfer of troops and arms.
Syrskyi claims that Russia has suffered 17,800 casualties from the start of the Kursk incursion.
Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander-in-chief, claimed that Ukrainian forces had killed, injured or captured 17,819 Russians in Kursk Oblast, since the first days after Kyiv’s invasion.
According to the general’s statement, 6,662 Russian soldiers have been killed since August 8, 10,446 have been wounded, and 711 have been captured.
The Ukraine launched its cross border incursion into Kursk Oblast in August, claiming that it had initially seized 1,300 square kilometers. However, the pressure has recently increased as Russia has sent reinforcements.
Syrskyi denied the claims of Russian President Vladimir Putin, made during the BRICS Summit in Kazan on October 24, that around 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers were cut off in Kursk Oblast.
Syrskyi stated that “This is a complete disinformation and does not reflect reality.”
“Ukrainian forces continue active operations in Kursk direction. They have destroyed the enemy’s combat capability for the third consecutive month.”
The Kyiv independent could not verify the claims.
The reports came just days after the first North Korean soldiers were reportedly deployed on the front lines of the Kursk Oblast alongside Russian forces. Ukraine’s military intelligence said that North Korea had sent 12,000 troops, including 500 officers and 3 generals.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the Russian president, said that Russia planned to send its first North Korean soldiers into a combat zone between October 27 and 28.
Putin: Russia is not planning any concessions in peace talks with Ukraine
Vladimir Putin, Russian president, said in an interview to state media on October 25 that any peace agreement to end Russia’s war with Ukraine should be in Moscow’s favor.
Putin set out conditions for negotiations ahead of Ukraine’s first summit on peace in June. These included Kyiv’s surrendering the four oblasts that Moscow had illegally claimed in September 2022. Since then, Russia has said that it will not engage with talks as long Ukrainian forces remain in Kursk Oblast.
“Any outcome must favor Russia, I say without embarrassment. It must be based upon the realities of the battlefield.” Putin said that there would be no swaps or concessions.
In March 2022, Russia and Ukraine held talks in Istanbul to begin the full-scale invasion. However, the negotiations were abandoned when Ukraine retook control of the north of the nation and mass war crimes in the liberated zones were discovered.
In his remarks to Ukraine’s Peace Summit held in June of this year, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Istanbul negotiations failed due to the Russian side’s “ultimatums.”
Moscow was not invited by the summit in Switzerland that took place in June, which was attended by more than 90 countries. The discussions were dismissed as irrelevant without Moscow’s involvement. Zelensky, who attended the event, expressed his hope for a second meeting to be held by the end the year with Russia included.
Moscow has announced that it will not be participating in any future peace summits hosted by Switzerland, calling the process “fraud.”
Poland rejects transferring South Korean arms to Ukraine
Polish media RMF24 reported that on October 25, the Polish President Andrzej Duda ruled out the possibility of transferring weapons systems purchased by Warsaw from South Korea to Kyiv.
South Korean law prohibits exporting weapons to active conflict areas, but Seoul has hinted repeatedly that this could be changed in light of the deepening of military cooperation between Russia & North Korea.
Duda said that he had spoken to Kyiv regarding the possible transfer of South Korean arms, but his response to allies was “unambiguous.”
“There is no scenario where we give away weapons that we recently purchased for billions of Zlotys out of the pockets of our tax payers.” Duda stated during his South Korea visit that these weapons must serve as a defense and security measure for the Republic of Poland.
Duda said that if Seoul agrees to provide Ukraine with weapons from the stockpile meant for Poland, they will not come from that stockpile.
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR), which has confirmed the report, said that North Korea sent nearly 12,000 soldiers to Russia, including 500 officers, three generals and 500 other troops.
The first soldiers who will join Russian forces in the war on Ukraine have reportedly been sent to Kursk Oblast. This is where Ukraine launched a cross-border invasion in August, and still controls large areas of territory.
On October 25, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Russia plans to send its first North Korean soldiers into the combat zone between Oct. 27 and 28.
According to HUR chief Kyrylo Budaynov, Russia helps Pyongyang avoid sanctions and develop its nucleonic capabilities in exchange for the transfer of troops and arms.
Ukraine strikes Russian Buk air defenses, destroys radar guidance system
The General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported that Ukrainian forces destroyed radar equipment of a Buk M2 air defense system, and struck a Buk M3 system over night on October 25 in the occupied Luhansk oblast.
The attack was carried by Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces as well as other military units. The General Staff did no elaborate on possible other damages besides the destroyed guidance system.
The statement stated that the Russian targets were “several dozen kilometers behind the frontline“.
Buk is the name of a family self-propelled medium-range air defence systems developed by the Soviet Union in the 1970s. The Buk-M2 is a modernized version, capable of shooting down targets such as tactical ballistic missiles from a distance of 50 and 65 kilometers (30 and 40 miles).
In the early months of Donbas War, Russian proxy forces used a Buk-missile to shoot down MH17 Malaysian Airlines over Donetsk Oblast in July 2014.
The military reported that Ukraine destroyed a Buk M3 system over night on October 21, 2010.
In its morning report of October 25, the General Staff stated that Ukrainian forces destroyed 982 Russian antiaircraft systems during the full-scale conflict.
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