Ukraine says,

The Ukrainian special forces struggling in the Western Kursk area in Russia have told the BBC that they have not seen any North Korean troops there in the last three weeks.

A spokesman said they were likely to have withdrawn after suffering heavy losses.

Last week, Western officials told the BBC that of about 11,000 troops sent from North Korea to fight for Russia, 1,000 were killed in just three months.

North Korea and Russia have not commented.

On Friday, the Ukrainian Special Forces spokesman told the BBC that it only applied to areas in the Kursk area where his powers fight.

The spokesman did not say how long this first line was.

And while this is not the complete picture, it implies significant victims of North Korea.

Separately, The New York Times also reported that the North Koreans were drawn from the front lines.

The newspaper cites US officials who say that the withdrawal may not be permanently and soldiers can return after receiving additional training or after the Russians come out with new ways to deploy them to avoid such heavy casualties.

Reports attributed to South Korean intelligence claim that the North Koreans are unprepared for the realities of modern war and are particularly vulnerable to the fact that they are directed by Ukrainian drones.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in recent months have deepened bilateral ties, signing a security and defense treaty.

Pyongyang’s help in Moscow now also extends to large quantities of ammunition and weapons.

Last August, the elite Ukrainian troops began offensive in Lightning in Kursk, seizing more than 1000 square kilometers (386 square meters) of Russian territory.

Since then, the Russian forces have been able to seize a significant part of this region.

Kyiv’s surprise was aimed at changing the dynamics of war.

Initially, he hoped the operation would ease the pressure on other parts of the front line more than 1000 km (620 miles), especially in Eastern Ukraine.

Moscow continues its merciless – though slowly – has progressed east, seizing a number of settlements in the Donetsk region in recent weeks.

Now Kiev wants to stay on the ground that he occupies in Kursk as a leverage for any possible negotiations or peace talks with Moscow.

Russia began a full -scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.