Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers in Russia's Kursk region, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday, the first time Ukraine has announced the capture of North Korean soldiers alive since their entry into the war last autumn.

In a statement posted on X, Zelenskyy said he had instructed Ukraine's security service to allow journalists access to the captured soldiers.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said the soldiers were captured in the western Kursk region, where Ukraine has been fighting to hold on to territory it seized last summer.