In a post on X, he said he is ready to ready to hand them over to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un "if he can organize their exchange for our warriors who are being held captive in Russia."
His offer came just a day after he revealed that Ukrainian forces had captured two wounded North Korean soldiers in Russia's Kursk region, a territory currently occupied by Ukraine.
"In addition to the first captured soldiers from North Korea, there will undoubtedly be more. It's only a matter of time before our troops manage to capture others. There should be no doubt left in the world that the Russian army is dependent on military assistance from North Korea," Zelensky said.
"For those North Korean soldiers who do not wish to return, there may be other options available," he added.
North Korea is believed to have sent over 10,000 soldiers to Russia to support its war in Ukraine, though neither Pyongyang nor Moscow have confirmed or denied their presence.
Meanwhile, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) estimated on Monday that there were approximately 3,000 North Korean casualties.
"About 300 North Korean soldiers have died, and 2,700 have been injured," lawmakers quoted an official from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) as saying in a closed-door meeting.
The spy agency attributed the massive casualties to North Korean troops' "lack of understanding of modern warfare," based on an analysis of combat footage it had recently obtained.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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