North Korean soldiers are reportedly nowhere to be seen on the Russian frontline, as Ukrainian special forces claimed they haven’t fought them in weeks.

Ukraine said Pyongyang’s troops have not been spotted in Russia‘s Kurk region, which Kyiv’s soldiers have been partially holding since August, for three weeks. A spokesman of the Ukrainian special forces speculated that this absence could be down to heavy losses, the BBC reports.

There were roughly 11,000 North Korean troops sent to fight in the war, and according to recent estimates by Western officials, 1,000 have been killed in three months.

US officials also said North Korean troops may return to fighting after extra training, or they could be deployed in new ways to mitigate losses, the New York Times reported.

South Korean intelligence reiterated how underprepared Kim Jong-un‘s troops are for modern warfare, with drone footage showing them hiding and unaware of their adversaries.

The South’s head of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), Cho Tae-yong, said North Korean soldiers are dying because they “lack … understanding of modern warfare” and do not understand how easily Ukrainian drones can locate them.

One soldier was spotted hiding in a tree, apparently not realising he could be seen by a drone. Another reportedly tried to kill himself by setting off a hand grenade, The Times reported.

The outlet said he was heard screaming “General Kim Jong-un” before being shot and killed rather than being captured.

Lee Seong-kweun, a member of South Korea’s National Assembly, also claimed that “in the memos carried by those killed … North Korean authorities emphasised self-destruction and suicide before capture”.

A former North Korean soldier going by the name Kim added that suicide is “the reality” of being a soldier for his country.

He told Reuters: “Self-detonation and suicides: that’s the reality about North Korea. These soldiers who left home for a fight there have been brainwashed and are truly ready to sacrifice themselves for Kim Jong-un.”

Volodymyr Zelensky also announced the capture of two injured North Korean soldiers, 19 and 25, and has offered to swap them for Ukrainian soldiers being held by Russia.

The two men are the first to survive after being captured, and social media videos posted by Mr Zelensky showed the 19-year-old asking to remain in Ukraine.

They’re both associated with the Reconnaissance General Bureau, which oversees international espionage, according to the NIS, which added that they’d be allowed to defect to the South.