Hundreds of wounded Russian troops who fought in Ukraine have been taken to North Korean hospitals for treatment, Moscow’s envoy to Pyongyang has told state media.
North Korea provided the Russian soldiers with full medical care, accommodation and food, all free of charge, ambassador Alexander Macegora said in an interview with state-run outlet Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
“A clear example of... a brotherly attitude (between Russia and North Korea) is the rehabilitation of hundreds of wounded soldiers … in Korean sanatoriums and hospitals,” Macegora said.
He added that Moscow supplies Pyongyang with coal, food and medicine.
In a report on Monday, the Institute of the Study of War, a U.S.-based conflict monitor, was cautious about Macegoras’ comments but added that the possibility of Russian troops recuperating in North Korean hospitals shouldn’t be disregarded.
“The arrival of combat experienced Russian soldiers... to North Korea may allow the Russian military to work with North Korean forces and disseminate lessons from the war in Ukraine while ostensibly recuperating,” the report said.
U.S. news network CNN questioned the capacity of North Korea’s healthcare system to treat Russian troops.
Two years ago, the broadcaster reported that North Korea was experiencing shortages of medicine and basic healthcare equipment.
Ukrainian and Western assessments say that some 11,000 troops from North Korea were deployed in Russia’s Kursk region to support Moscow's forces. Russia has neither confirmed nor denied their presence.
At the end of January, a Ukrainian military spokesperson said that North Korean troops had not been spotted on the battlefield in Kursk for around three weeks, suggesting they may have been forced to withdraw after taking heavy losses.
According to Kyiv, more than 3,000 North Koreans have been killed or wounded.
During a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Pyongyang in June 2024, he and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un signed a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty" that included a mutual defense pact.
