Moscow announced on Tuesday that it has taken control of the mining hub of Selydove in eastern Ukraine, coinciding with Kyiv’s new mobilization efforts and concerns about North Korea’s increasing military cooperation with Russia.
Russian forces have been making rapid gains along the expansive eastern front, where Ukrainian troops, exhausted and outmatched, are being forced to retreat while calling for more support from Western allies.
The Kremlin claimed to have captured four new settlements in the industrial Donetsk region. This announcement came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol agreed to enhance security cooperation amid reports that thousands of North Korean troops have been sent to Russia to assist its military efforts.
The Russian defense ministry stated that its forces have “fully liberated” Selydove, a town with a Soviet-era infrastructure and an estimated population of 21,000, most of whom have fled due to ongoing drone and rocket attacks. Moscow also asserted control over nearby villages, including Bogoyavlenka, Girnyk, and Katerynivka, all part of the Donetsk region, which President Vladimir Putin declared as Russian territory in late 2022.
These recent gains are part of a broader series of Russian advancements that have intensified since February, particularly following the collapse of Ukrainian defenses in the town of Avdiivka. According to an AFP analysis based on data from the American Institute for the Study of War, Russia has advanced a record 478 square kilometers (185 square miles) in October alone, with two-thirds of this territory located in Donetsk.
Ukraine has been facing worsening manpower shortages and is in the midst of a contentious debate on how to bolster its military. On Tuesday, Oleksandr Lytvynenko, Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security Council, announced plans to recruit an additional 160,000 personnel over the next three months.
As these developments unfolded, Zelensky discussed the deployment of North Korean troops with President Yoon, expressing concern over reports of approximately 10,000 North Korean troops being sent to Russia. “The conclusion is clear: this war is becoming internationalized, extending beyond two countries,” Zelensky said.
Yoon characterized North Korea’s involvement as “unprecedented and dangerous,” warning of potential transfers of sensitive military technology between Moscow and Pyongyang. Ukraine is expected to host a South Korean delegation soon to address the escalating situation.
Simultaneously, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui arrived in Vladivostok and is set to travel to Moscow, as reported by TASS.
Neither Russia nor North Korea has denied the presence of North Korean troops in Russia. On the same day, Russia heightened its nuclear posturing by announcing new nuclear drills overseen by Putin.
Zelensky was in Iceland to rally support for his “victory plan,” which calls for Ukraine’s immediate invitation to NATO, and he was also expected to request additional military aid and air defense systems from Nordic leaders.
Hours before Moscow’s announcement of its territorial advances, Russian aerial bombardments killed four people in Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, which is located around 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the Russian border. Mayor Igor Terekhov reported that nearly two dozen buildings were either destroyed or damaged in the attack. Russian strikes also claimed lives in Kherson and Odesa, both in southern Ukraine.
