North Korean troops not seen for 3 weeks in parts of Kursk Oblast, Ukraine's Special Forces say Ukraine deploys long-range drone capable of 2,000 km strike, military says Ukrainian drones strike "one of 10 largest oil refineries in Russia,

North Korean troops have been pulled back from the frontline amid devastating losses, according to Ukrainian and American officials. Kim Jong Un ’s forces have not been seen on the battlefield for around three weeks, Ukrainian special forces said, according to the New York Times.

Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SOF) confirmed that North Korean troops have been absent from Russia's Kursk Oblast for around three weeks. Source: Oleksandr Kindratenko, the spokesperson for the Special Operations Forces,

The spokesman did not say how long that front line was. And while this is not the full picture, it does suggest significant North Korean casualties. Separately, the New York Times also reported that the North Koreans had been pulled off the front lines.

North Korean troops have not been seen on the frontlines in Russia’s Kursk region for several weeks, a Ukrainian military official said Friday, amid reports of mass casualties among Pyongyang’s forces.

Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov said media reports that those troops have not been seen on the front lines there in weeks are “wrong.” There are still about 8,000 North Koreans battling Ukraine on the front lines in Kursk,

North Korean troops seem to temporarily withdraw from one section of front in Kursk Oblast, military says Russia claims to capture Velyka Novosilka, Ukraine admits partial retreat but says battles ongoing Russia intensifies attacks near Pokrovsk,

Although the North Korean troops were highlighted as a decisive escalation in the conflict, their performance appears to have fallen well short of expectations.