North Korean troops have been deployed to bolster Russian forces in the Kursk border region with Ukraine, where they are gaining battlefield experience despite initial heavy losses.

The wounded fighters were taken to Kyiv for questioning, authorities said, where they could reveal details of Pyongyang’s cooperation with Moscow.

North Korea is gaining crucial military experience and equipment by sending troops to Russia, a U.S. official warned the United Nations, making the regime a growing threat to neighboring countries.

Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers and taken them prisoner, transporting them to Kyiv for questioning in what the country’s security services say is “ irrefutable evidence ” of Pyongyang ’s involvement in Russia’s war. Both soldiers were captured on 9 January in the Russian border region of Kursk, Kyiv said.

Moscow's counterattack has left Ukrainian forces outstretched and demoralized, killing and wounding thousands and retaking more than 40% of the 380 square miles of Kursk Ukraine had seized.

Russia may be close to sharing advanced satellite technology with North Korea after the isolated nation supplied troops to help bolster Moscow’s war in Ukraine, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Monday.

North Korean troops have been fighting with Russian forces in the war against Ukraine, with one Ukrainian commander detailing their "meat grinder strategy".