Ukraine-Russia live: Thousands of North Koreans in Putin’s ‘meat grinder’ war legitimate target, says Blinken

Ambassador Neil Holland delivered a speech to the UN outlining the fate of two Ukrainians being held by Russia.

He shared harrowing details from witness testimony at an event in London and urged Russia to release all Ukrainian citizens it has arbitrarily detained.

He recounted the story of Hryhorii Holovko detained by Russian forces in Kherson in October 2022.

He said: “Russian forces tortured and intimidated him, including beatings and electric shocks and by carving Russian symbols into his body. Russian guards made threats against his wife and child and forced him to sing the Russian national anthem.”

Hryhorii was released in May 2023, having been forced to sign papers to align with the Russian state.

He spoke of the family of 26-year-old Iryna Navalnaya who are worried she will die whilst being unlawfully detained.

He added: “Two months passed before Iryna’s family discovered she was being held in a prison in Donetsk. Women who have been released from this prison have shared accounts of the beatings and other barbaric treatment Iryna has experienced during interrogations, leaving her covered in bruises.”

Ambassodor Holland said the “UK stands in solidarity with them and Ukraine” and called on Russia to release the prisoners.

“We call on Russia to fully cooperate with international mechanisms investigating these abuses, grant immediate access to humanitarian organisations to all facilities where Ukrainian civilians are being held, and uphold its obligations to protect civilians and respect human rights.”

The Ukrainian government has named three North Korean generals it says are accompanying the thousands of Korean People’s Army troops deployed to Russia in aid of Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

Ukraine named Colonel General Kim Yong Bok, a senior general with command of special forces troops, including the XI Corps, also known as the Storm Corps, which the South Korean intelligence service said has been dispatched to Russia.

Michael Madden, a North Korea leadership expert with the U.S.-based Stimson Center, said Kim’s role appears to be larger, running the KPA Light Infantry Training Guidance Bureau that includes the XI Corps as well as light infantry units deployed to KPA corps units and seconded to special missions for the Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Korea’s main spy agency.

“This is a large and almost unprecedented deployment for the KPA,” said Madden, who believes the general is in Russia as a representative of Kim Jong Un.

“As such, there are a number of administrative and liaison tasks so Kim Jong Un has sent in Kim Yong Bok as a proxy decision-maker until the KPA unit presence is fully stood up.”

Kim Yong Bok may eventually defer command to a subordinate KPA officer of a senior colonel or major general rank, Madden added.

Other top officers identified by Ukraine include Colonel General Ri Chang Ho, Deputy Chief of the General Staff and head of the Reconnaissance General Bureau, and Major General Sin Kum Cheol, head of the Main Operational Directorate.

As head of North Korea’s main intelligence service since about 2022, Ri has been sanctioned by South Korea, which alleged that he oversaw major cyber hacking efforts to steal technology and foreign currency.

Like Kim Yong Bok, Ri also accompanied leader Kim Jong Un to an unusually large number of events this year, including the inspection of an east coast navy base.

Madden said Sin’s career was unclear, but given his one-star rank, he was likely to assume command of the North Korean troops in Russia once Kim Yong Bok and Ri Chang Ho departed.

When he was asked to approach Ukrainian investigators with a $5 million bribe on behalf of a former top official in 2020, businessman Yevhen Shevchenko would have been entitled to a cut as the middleman.

He finally received his money - but from the Ukrainian government, in exchange for reporting the kickback to anti-corruption police and setting up a sting operation.

Shevchenko is one of Ukraine’s first two whistleblowers to receive a state payout for their role in helping bring a crooked official to justice, part of a corruption crackdown that has taken on greater importance during the war with Russia.

Shevchenko, who had previously worked with Ukraine’s anti-corruption police as an informant, received the equivalent of around $320,000.

“There is a very large number of people who can help uncover crimes but don’t because they’re afraid, or for some other reasons,” he said.

More than 4,000 reports have been submitted since last year, though so far only a small fraction - 47 - were found to have involved concrete criminal or administrative violations.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will hold talks with Li Hui, China’s special envoy for Eurasian affairs and point person for Ukraine, later on Thursday on the sidelines of a security conference in Minsk, the state RIA news agency reported.

The meeting will take place as Russia’s war in Ukraine appears to have taken a dangerous new turn, with NATO and South Korea expressing alarm that North Korean troops could soon be joining Moscow’s side.

On Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reaffirmed Beijing’s strong ties with Moscow at a meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko

A large explosion has been reported in the port area of Russian-occupied Berdyansk.

Petro Andriushchenko, Advisor to the Mayor of Mariupol, said on Telegram: “Our drones have been attacking Berdyansk since six in the morning.

“The main one hits in the port area. Smoke from a large fire is visible above the port with a large number of ambulances and firemen.

“In addition, the local occupation administration, almost for the first time, acknowledged the hit, reporting an attack on the premises of the administration itself in the city

“In addition, the electricity supply has disappeared in some areas, and the work of official budget bodies has been canceled.

“Finally, good morning from the occupation.”

Viktor Dudukalov, deputy chairman of the Berdiansk District Council, told Espreso TV that at least six hits were counted in the city.

“Since 6am today, we [in Berdiansk] have been facing a very tense situation with Russian air defense. At least six hits have been counted, primarily in the port area.

“There is smoke, ambulances are on the scene, and certain streets in the city center leading to the port are blocked.

“The occupiers claim that everything is fine and under control, yet they have decided to take today off and are urging everyone to stay at home, despite ‘everything being under control’.”

One person was killed and six were injured after Russian strikes on buildings, buses and cars in Kherson over the past 24 hours.

Chief of the Kherson Regional State Administration Oleksandr Prokudin said on Facebook on Thursday: “Russian military targeted library and office premises and populated areas of the region, including damage to multi-storey buildings and 21 private buildings.

“The occupiers also [struck] garages, buses and private cars. Due to Russian aggression, one person died, six more got injured.”

Throughout the past day, Ukrainian Defense Forces said there were 145 recorded combat clashes at the frontline. They added their strikes had hit one Russian command post, two air defence systems, one artillery gun in firing position, two field ammunition depots, three clusters of enemy personnel and military equipment, and four enemy radar stations.

Russian troops attacked a strategic bridge across the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Estuary in Ukraine’s southern Odesa region overnight, launching two ballistic Iskander missiles and eight guided missiles, said the Ukrainian military on Thursday.

The bridge has been a target several times over the past two years, and is an important railway and car connection in the region.

The Ukrainian military added that Russia used two ballistic missiles to attack the eastern town of Kramatorsk.

The air force shot down 17 out of 43 drones and two guided missiles launched by Russia overnight, it said, adding that 23 drones were “locationally lost”, likely due to electronic warfare and three more left Ukraine-controlled airspace.

All drones threatening the capital Kyiv were disabled by air defence.

Ukrainian forces have pushed into Toretsk recently, a US war think tank has said.

Meanwhile, Russian forces have advanced near Kupyansk, Pokrovsk, Kurakhove, and southwest of Donetsk City, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on Wednesday.

An investigation by the BBC has found that Russia may be using drones to target civilians in the frontline city of Kherson.

Both Ukraine and Russia use drones to target military infrastructure.

Kherson’s military administration told the BBC that 30 civilians in the city have died due to Russian drone attacks since 1 July.

Intentionally targeting civilians is a war crime.

The Independent was not able to independently verify these claims.

The Russian military has not responded to the BBC’s questions on the allegations, but they have consistently denied that they target civilians.

BBC Verify claimed they have examined six videos shared on both Ukrainian and Russian social media where evidence of these apparent drone attacks on civilians is visible.

Ukraine has named three North Korean generals who it claims have accompanied their troops to Russia.

In a statement to the UN Security Council on Wednesday, Ukraine’s delegation said the generals are among at least 500 North Korean officers sent to Russia, reported Reuters.

The statement added that the troops will be formed into at least five formations of 2,000-3,000 soldiers each and integrated into Russian units to hide their presence.

Ukraine named Colonel General Kim Yong-bok, a senior general with command of special forces that South Korean intelligence claims have been deployed to Russia.

“This is a large and almost unprecedented deployment for the KPA,” said North Korea leadership expert with US-based Stimson Center Michael Madden, who believes General Kim Yong-bok is in Russia as a representative of Kim Jong Un.

The other generals are Colonel General Ri Changho, deputy chief of the general staff and head of the reconnaissance general bureau, and Major General Sin Kum-cheol, head of the main operational directorate.