- Ukraine is making movies and dropping leaflets on North Korean troops to get them to give up.
- North Korea has despatched hundreds of troopers to assist Russia in its battle towards Ukraine, officers say.
- “Many see it as an opportunity to flee the regime,” a spokesperson for the “I Want to Live” mission stated.
Ukraine is making an attempt to steer North Korean troopers to give up quite than battle alongside Russia.
Ukrainian intelligence providers have been distributing leaflets by way of drones and projectiles and making movies urging North Korean troops to abandon, Euronews reported.
Vitaliy Matvienko, a spokesperson for the “I Want to Live” mission, informed Euronews that “after all, not everybody desires to battle.”
“We know very properly the residing circumstances in North Korea,” he stated. “Therefore, many see it as an opportunity to flee the regime and go to a different nation.”
Ukraine is finishing up its efforts below “I Want to Live,” a service that has facilitated Russian troopers’ give up. In October 2022, Russia blocked entry to its hotline and chatbot, although it is nonetheless accessible within the nation by way of VPN.
North Korea has despatched hundreds of troops to assist Russia in its battle towards Ukraine, officers from South Korea, Ukraine, and the US have stated.
Dmytro Ponomarenko, Ukraine’s ambassador to South Korea, informed Voice of America final month that the quantity might attain 15,000, with troops rotated out each two to a few months, with a cumulative 100,000 North Korean troopers serving in Russia inside a yr.
Ukraine’s “I Want to Live” mission informed Business Insider the leaflets stated Kim Il Sung — North Korea’s founder — did not need North Korean troopers to battle for Russian “imperialists.”
The leaflets additionally include step-by-step directions on how one can give up, with ensures and advantages for these prisoners of battle, it stated.
It declined to reveal different strategies getting used to persuade North Korean troops to give up.
“I Want to Live” posted a video on its Telegram channel earlier this month displaying a North Korean volunteer within the Ukrainian armed forces calling on his countrymen to take their probability.
“We won’t simply welcome you however assist you to begin a brand new life,” he stated. “Support, work, and the chance to reside a good life are ready for you right here. Even cash, so you can begin your approach with a clear slate.”
The textual content accompanying the video stated Ukraine assured all prisoners humane remedy. “Far away from ‘Big Brother,’ who watches over all of the inhabitants of North Korea, it’s a sin to not make the most of this distinctive alternative,” it stated.
In October, Ukraine’s army intelligence company put out a assertion with the promise of offering snug beds and heat meals to North Korean troopers who surrendered.
It additionally revealed a Korean-language video showcasing its prisoner-of-war camps, in addition to the meals served there.
Last month, South Korean intelligence estimated that Russia was paying about $2,000 a month for every soldier.
But Bruce W. Bennett, a protection researcher and North Korea specialist at RAND, informed BI he suspected the cash was going on to North Korea’s ruling elite.
“Perhaps solely a small quantity and even nothing” will go to the troopers themselves, he stated.
Correction: December 13, 2024 — An earlier model of this story misspelled the primary identify of the spokesperson for the “I Want to Live” mission. He’s Vitaliy Matvienko, not Vitality Matvienko.
