South Korea has confirmed the death of one of its citizens fighting as a volunteer alongside Ukrainian forces, marking the first official acknowledgment of a combat fatality among its nationals in the conflict.
The volunteer, identified only as Mr. Kim, 50, died in May from combat in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region.
Seoul’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on Thursday, November 27, confirming the fatality.
This confirmation follows earlier unverified reports from Russian state media about South Korean volunteers fighting in Ukraine.
Ukrainian authorities notified the South Korean government of Mr. Kim’s death and arranged for his funeral.
A South Korean consular official attended the funeral, which was held in Kyiv on Tuesday, November 25.
The ministry added that it provided necessary consular assistance to the deceased’s family.
Previously, Russian security agencies, cited by Russian media, had reported that some South Koreans joined the fight and some were killed.
Seoul had stated it was investigating those claims but had not confirmed any deaths until now.