Partisans Report North Korean Troops in Training Area Near Mariupol

The Ukrainian partisan movement CPOK (Смерть Русским Оккупантам и Коллаборантам – Death to Russian Occupiers and Collaborators) wrote on its Telegram channel on Sunday, Oct. 13, that it had identified the presence of North Korean military personnel in training areas located in the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR).

The group claimed that three separate training grounds had been established in the region, with the most active being near the village of Sartana, about 14 kilometers (9 miles) northeast of Mariupol. It said the area was currently being used for intensive artillery live firing training, which it said refutes the information about Russian forces suffering a shortage of artillery ammunition.

The report said that North Korean military instructors appeared to be setting up the training grounds, adding that they “probably feel confident and safe at the moment.” The CPOK group, which mainly operates in the Azov area to the east of Mariupol, said that many of the residents from Sartana are actively cooperating with Russian occupation forces.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address on Sunday that North Korea was transferring people as well as weapons to assist Russian forces fighting in Ukraine.

“We see that the alliance between Russia and regimes such as North Korea is getting stronger,” he said. “It is obvious that under such conditions our relationship with our partners needs to evolve, the front line needs more support.”

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While the setting up of these training areas and the presence of the North Korean military there has not been verified by other sources, it would be logically expected that training facilities would be established in advance of the arrival of additional DPRK troops.

Kyiv Post reported on a Ukrainian missile strike on Oct. 3, in which six North Korean officers were among 20 military personnel killed in the Russian-occupied territory near Donetsk that were attending a demonstration on the training of personnel for assault and defensive operations.

According to Sunday’s CPOK announcement, the group will “do everything possible” to ensure that Moscow’s military allies from North Korea receive a “greeting from the Ukrainian Armed Forces as soon as possible.”