Silicon Bites #92 - North Koreans Quit Kursk After Failing to Recapture the Region from Ukraine Army

Edition No92 | 06-02-2025 - North Koreans may have pulled out of front line. At least this is the claim coming from officials in Ukraine. Ukrainian special forces fighting in the Kursk region, which is where Koreans are thought to be concentrated, told the BBC they have not seen any North Korean troops there for the past three weeks. Ukraine's Special Operations Forces (SOF) spokesperson, Colonel Oleksandr Kindratenko, said it was likely they had pulled out after suffering heavy losses. So just how upset is Jim Jong Un with Putin at this humiliating blow? ---------- We ran two events in Ukraine in the last two weeks. Lviv (part 2) and Kyiv. The event we ran in August 2023 was a huge success, and had a great impact. Now our aim is even more ambitious. Two cities. Two events. Multiple panels consisting of the best experts, and all filmed in high definition for the channel. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras But it costs. Last time the overall cost was £3,500 for Live in Lviv, and we covered 80% of this through ticket sales. This time the costs are higher, and there's less opportunity to sell tickets at the available venues and studios, so I'm creating a campaign to raise £5,000 to make this trip a reality. We also have a much more ambitious programme to film interviews around Kyiv and Lviv for the channel. This project will have an impact, so please help if you can. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras ---------- Neither Russia nor North Korea release casualty figures or even admit openly that those troops are fighting on Russian soil, but estimates suggest that out of some 11,000 troops sent to fight, 1,000 had been killed in just three months. Possibly far more are killed and injured. If the speculation is true, it suggests significant North Korean casualties, because of which they have been pulled off the front lines. The concern among Ukrainian experts and Western officials is that the withdrawal may not be permanent. There is a possibility of course, that North Korean soldiers could return after receiving additional training, and in far greater numbers. But the Russians would have to come up with new ways of deploying them to avoid a repeat of such heavy casualties. ---------- SILICON CURTAIN FILM FUNDRAISER A project to make a documentary film in Ukraine, to raise awareness of Ukraine's struggle and in supporting a team running aid convoys to Ukraine's front-line towns. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras ---------- NEWS SOURCES: https://kyivindependent.com/north-korean-troops-not-seen-for-3-weeks-in-parts-of-kursk-oblast-ukraines-special-forces-say/ https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjder8zgk48o https://www.politico.eu/article/north-korea-troops-removed-from-russia-ukraine-combat-seoul-spy-agency-nis-says/ https://kyivindependent.com/ukraines-strike-on-russian-command-post-kills-key-russian-north-korean-officers/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2025/01/15/north-korea-deployed-12000-troops-to-kursk-in-october-three-months-later-a-third-are-dead-or-wounded/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNkh5I_ZKQ4&t=472s ---------- SUPPORT THE CHANNEL: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain https://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtain ---------- TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND: Save Ukraine https://www.saveukraineua.org/ Superhumans - Hospital for war traumas https://superhumans.com/en/ UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukraine https://unbroken.org.ua/ Come Back Alive https://savelife.in.ua/en/ Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchen https://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraine UNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyy https://u24.gov.ua/ Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation https://prytulafoundation.org NGO “Herojam Slava” https://heroiamslava.org/ kharpp - Reconstruction project supporting communities in Kharkiv and Przemysl https://kharpp.com/ NOR DOG Animal Rescue https://www.nor-dog.org/home/ ----------