North Korea's North Korean military captured 'Bungdae Ching' PD "will likely become a new 'game changer' of war"

YTN Radio (FM 94.5) [YTN News FM Wise Radio Life]

□ Broadcast date and time: January 13, 2025 (Mon)
□ Host: Announcer Park Gui-bin
□ Castor: Kim Young-mi Jonggun PD

* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate information.

◆ Announcer Park Gui-bin (hereinafter referred to as Park Gui-bin): Ukraine released a related video saying that it captured two North Korean soldiers sent to the Kursk region of Russia. As the investigations of the two captured North Korean soldiers have been made public, the reality of the North Korean troops dispatched has been revealed. Let me find out more about it. I'm connecting with Kim Young-mi, a military PD specializing in international disputes, who went to Ukraine to report there. Hello, PD.

◇ Kim Young-mi Jong-gun PD (hereinafter referred to as Kim Young-mi): Yes, hello. I'm Kim Young-mi PD.

◆ Park Gui-bin: Yes, where are you calling now?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes, first of all, I entered Korea. And I'm organizing my coverage like this.

◆ Park Gui-bin: I'm glad you came back safely. At that time, you had an interview in Ukraine, and there were many urgent moments when you heard that an air raid siren went off right before the interview, right?

◇ Kim Young-mi: I heard air raid sirens several times a day, and when I went to Ukraine the year before last, there were a lot more attacks that came in last year. So fighting with air raid sirens was one of my daily tasks, but I'm very fortunate to have returned home safely.

◆ Park Gui-bin: How was the horrors of the war you saw there this time?

◇ Kim Young-mi: I felt it every year while I was covering it, but this time, all Ukrainian people were really tired and didn't evacuate even if the air raid siren went off.

◆ Park Gwibin: Because it's become a daily routine?

◇ Kim Young-mi: There were a lot of thoughts that it became a daily life, and rather than being so scared of death, I was afraid of a drone attack because when an Iranian Shahed drone flies like this, I only saw it fly like this, so I didn't know how much it was, but after it fell like this, debris splashed. But this debris is also heavy, so there is a lot of damage from the debris. So, it was a report among the reports that I felt really scared of drones.

◆ Park Gui Bin: Yes, I think you met a lot of people this time. People in Ukraine. Have you met any soldiers?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes, those soldiers were also wounded while in the front, or even those soldiers, they met not only the Ukrainian military, but also the Russian soldiers who came in as prisoners. So I focused on what kind of situation they were in, how they were captured, and how. And the method used by the Russian military is called the FPV drone during the war, so there are many FPV drone attacks that are very light and crude, hold batteries like this, and carry bombs like this. So, while listening to what the situation is like, I realized once again that the war in Ukraine was a new type of war.

◆ Park Gui-bin: Have you heard about the North Korean military?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes, first of all, when I first went to cover it, I was very impressed because I randomly asked Ukrainians on the street what they thought about the North Korean military's participation in the Ukraine war, but everyone thought that one of the most dangerous things would be a world war. So they had a lot of pressure not only against Russia, but also against the North Korean army, and the process of the North Korean army fighting in the Kursk region was a hot topic every day. It's not easy to walk like this without thinking, or walk like this during a battle, but since the North Korean military has no combat experience, it seemed to think that it was not a big deal at first if a drone attack flew like this from somewhere. So those videos were very popular among Ukrainians.

◆ Park Gui-bin: The story of walking on the open land means that you can't help but be exposed to the enemy too well. But isn't the North Korean military participating in the war now? But you heard about me going around like that?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes, that's right. In the third year, Russian and Ukrainian troops usually have their own defenses against drones, so I think a lot of people are watching me during the day, especially because drones are watching all the open areas. In the case of the North Korean military, there is little information like that. Anyway, a lot of these videos were shared with each other on Telegram.

◆ Park Gui-bin: I released a video of two North Korean soldiers captured by Ukraine. But I didn't know that the North Korean troops who were dispatched would be mobilized for the war. It's a bit shocking to say this right now. These open investigations are coming out now. Producer, can you clean it up?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes, they knew that the North Korean military was now deployed to the battle site in Russia, not to war, but to be trained. But in the early days of the war, the same was true of the Russian army. There were many statements from the Russian military that they were not going to Ukraine because of the war, but because they were just traveling by truck, it was Ukraine. So, I think I didn't know the fact that I was dispatched until I arrived at the battlefield in Ukraine. And the Ukrainian intelligence service is treating the North Korean troops captured alive, and it is said that they were born in 2005 and 1999 respectively, but in the case of the captured North Korean troops, the degree of injury is not very severe. However, in the meantime, there were North Korean soldiers who actually captured them, but in fact, they died without enduring for a long time, so I don't think I could follow them directly like this. However, in the case of the North Korean military captured this time, the degree of injuries is not so severe, so it is now possible to hear such information. If you look at the picture, your hands are wrapped like this, and your face is also bandaged. I think the frostbite is very severe, and the degree of injury is not easy, so I think you had the spirit to surrender to some extent. In fact, the Ukrainian military tried very hard to capture North Korean soldiers alive, and the Russian military tried very hard to prevent them from being captured alive. The reason for this is that propaganda seems to be trying to avoid situations where both countries can be used and available, but I understand that the North Korean military captured this time was probably arrested while falling behind.

◆ Park Gui-bin: Was there anything that surprised the PD the most or something that impressed you the most when you looked at the survey?

◇ Kim Young-mi: First of all, I also watch videos of the North Korean military like this, but I thought that these people were not prepared at all for the war, so the actual battle. So while I was covering war zones, I thought about hiding like this by concealing a bullet or something even among civilians, but I really didn't think about going around like this. So I was very surprised to see these people looking at the drone like this and trying to shoot. So I thought that children were not prepared for modern warfare at all, and that's why I thought they were more exposed to danger.

◆ Park Gui-bin: It is known that our National Intelligence Service is also participating in the North Korean military newspaper. It should be said that it has been confirmed now that a significant number of North Korean troops dispatched have suffered losses, right?

◇ Kim Young-mi: That's right. In the case of this North Korean military, the Russian military is at the forefront, and Kursk is really at the forefront. The fact that Russia and Ukraine are in the region where they are fighting right now means that they have been put at the forefront of this war. Of course, nearly 1,300 people are killed a day in the Russian military, and I don't think it will be any different from the perspective of the North Korean military. So in a way, the fact that he was put on the front line in that defenseless state is very inhumane and I think he could have become a new game changer in this war.

◆ Park Gwi-bin: I think we can see a little bit like this, where they were put into war in a state that was close to defenseless and eventually led to large-scale ideology. If the NIS is helping them interrogate, what more information do you think we should get from them?

◇ Kim Young-mi: First of all, I think it's very important to see how many of them are actually there, which units are at the center, and how Russia has been put into military operations. And the other thing is how the North Korean military is trying to deal with this new drone war right now. In fact, South Korea used drones a lot as toys, but not everyone in North Korea had drones, so it might be a really new machine for them. So I think I'm very curious about how they were defending when these things were put in. So the information I heard from Ukraine is that the Ukrainians who can speak Korean are interpreting Korean. I said a lot that I didn't understand the North Koreans well because they were wiretapping and stuff like this. So real Koreans who speak purely Korean can understand North Korean well, but in that sense, I think the participation of Koreans in this interrogation can get a lot more information.

◆ Park Gui-bin: Yes, but if you look at the testimony of the Ukrainian military, they said that the North Korean military is not trying to become prisoners of Ukraine. So he killed himself with a grenade. There's a claim like this. What do you think?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes, and if they are captured, the Ukrainian military will have no choice but to use them as propaganda. So, you might think that because of their capture, they might be able to pressure the Korean side a little bit and get more support for weapons and things like that. So in a way, the Russian government wants to avoid these situations that could lead to a civil war on Ukrainian soil as much as possible. So, because Ukrainian soldiers and these people could capture them alive during the operation, the Russian military is actually at the forefront, and the North Korean military between them seems to have been used in military operations, so it seems that they killed themselves right before they were captured so that they could not be captured, and the Ukrainian military seems to have struggled a lot. So, I think that in the future, I will try harder not to be captured and to keep my troops from being exposed to suicide like this.

◆ Park Gui-bin: But haven't we revealed all the North Korean troops captured by Ukraine? Of course, their faces were bandaged, but what they said about their injuries. Shouldn't this be disclosed under international law in the case of this captured prisoner?

◇ Kim Young-mi: Once you're captured on the battlefield, you can be treated as a civilian by the Geneva Agreement. So, it is true that medical care, meals, and safety must be guaranteed. However, it is usually disclosed to the media and it cannot be, and isn't there a country's actual law in each country? So, based on that standard, I think maybe Ukraine has done enough legal review. And it is highly likely that the North Korean military agreed to that. Because when I was covering the Russian military this time, I definitely got consent. However, in the case of Russian prisoners of war, they also agreed with me to go to the media while cooperating with the coverage. So I thought the fear was that they might die or that they might die without knowing that they were caught. So when I saw that they agreed to go to the media, I think the North Korean military probably went through that process. In any case, the captured North Korean troops can be treated as civilians under the Geneva Agreement under international law.

◆ Park Gui-bin: Yes, I think they are also interested in whether they can be repatriated to Korea. How are you watching it?

◇ Kim Young-mi: When they say they want to go to South Korea, the Ukrainian government and the South Korean government have to consult with each other, so if our government takes more lives with Ukraine in the future, we can exchange our policy with Ukrainian soldiers who have been captured by the Ukrainian military. Now that prisoner exchange and prisoner recall are still taking place now, it can be a clue that can be negotiated in this area and then it can act as evidence. So, when we come to Korea, we have to discuss a lot about how we should deal with it, and I think we need to discuss how we should deal with the processes when the Ukrainian side exchanges prisoners.

◆ Park Gui Bin: We have about 30 seconds left. The news came out today that President-elect Trump is about to take office and is preparing for a meeting with Russian President Putin. If the two of you meet, is there a possibility that this will end?

◇ Kim Young-mi: First of all, President Putin will definitely want to pay for the end of the war, and President Trump will not pay for that as much as possible. So President Trump also said he would end the war as soon as he was elected, but after this negotiation and consultation, the situation will probably change a bit based on the interests of the United States to suit the issue. In any case, it is very heartbreaking from the perspective of the Ukrainian government that the war on Ukrainian soil is in the hands of Russia and the United States.

◆ Park Gui Bin: Yes. I see. I'm Kim Youngmi, the producer of Jonggun. Thank you, producer.

◇ Kim Young-mi: Yes. Thank you.