Victory Chronicles-DAY 958

South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun has stated that North Korea is likely to send regular troops to Ukraine to support Russia, due to their mutual treaty similar to a military alliance. 

This deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea is evident as Russia seeks weapons and other support in its war against Ukraine. Kim also mentioned that recent Ukrainian media reports of North Korean soldiers being killed and wounded near occupied Donetsk are likely true. It has been reported that a group of North Korean soldiers arrived in the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine to exchange experience with Russian counterparts, and there have been plans for North Korean soldiers or police to participate in reconstruction work in occupied Donbas in early 2023. 

The extent of the support that North Korean soldiers will provide to Russia in Ukraine has not been specified.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal reported that over 180 thousand tons of Ukrainian grain had been illicitly transported through the port of Mariupol by Russian forces in 2024. Shmyhal emphasized that Russia is weaponizing food as part of its aggressive tactics. He further noted that revenues from these stolen resources are being funneled into financing Russia’s war efforts. Additionally, Shmyhal declared that the forthcoming special tribunal on Russian aggression against Ukraine will specifically tackle the issue of economic terrorism perpetrated by Russia.

On 7 October at around 5 p.m., Russian troops launched an attack on Sloviansk, resulting in five people being injured, including a two-year-old child. The attack involved the use of UMPB D-30SN bombs, which caused severe damage to at least six apartment buildings, an administrative building, a car wash, and cars. 

Scouts from the 80th Halychyna Brigade discovered enemy gun emplacements in the Kursk region. The hidden D-30 and Msta-B guns were found in the forest, and the Russians were punished with 155 mm shells fired from M777 howitzers by the 44th separate artillery brigade. The shells successfully hit their targets, effectively reducing artillery support for the Russians in that area. 

Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lyubinets reported on October 7 that Ukrainian authorities are investigating another case of Russian forces’ unjust abuse and execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs). Lyubinets reported that he sent letters to the United Nations (UN) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in response to recent aerial footage of Russian forces torturing and executing three unarmed Ukrainian POWs near Niu York, Donetsk Oblast. 

Lyubinets noted that a Ukrainian brigade operating in the area published the footage on October 6 and highlighted that the highest levels of the Russian military command appear to be tolerating Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The Geneva Convention on POWs prohibits the “mutilation, cruel treatment, and torture” of POWs, as well as the execution of POWs or persons who are clearly rendered hors de combat.

Head of the Ukrainian Department for Combating Crimes in Conditions of Armed Conflict Yuri Bilousov stated on October 4 that Ukrainian sources documented evidence indicating that Russian forces have executed 93 Ukrainian prisoners of war (POW) on the battlefield since the start of the full-scale invasion and that 80 percent of the recorded cases occurred in 2024.

Bilousov noted on October 5 that these war crimes are systemic and that Russian authorities clearly condone these crimes. ISW has extensively reported on previous footage and reports of Russian servicemembers executing Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) and observed a wider trend of Russian abuses against Ukrainian POWs across various sectors of the front that appeared to be enabled, if not explicitly endorsed, by individual Russian commanders and unpunished by Russian field commanders.

21-year-old defender Danylo Bilyuk died on April 30, 2024, near the village of Spirne, Donetsk region. The fighter repelled an enemy attack, destroying an entire unit, but during the battle he was fatally wounded by an FPV drone.

Danylo is from the village of Bilokorovychi, Zhytomyr region. In 2020, he graduated from Bilokorovychi Lyceum and received a degree in rescue at the Higher Vocational School of Lviv State University of Life Safety in Vinnytsia. In his free time, he loved to read, especially psychological, love, and crime literature. Most of all, he loved to make others happy. 

In 2021, he joined the army. After the outbreak of a full-scale war, he signed a contract and volunteered to join the 4th Operational Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. From 2023, he took an active part in the defense of the Bakhmut district in the Donetsk region. 

During his lifetime, the fighter was awarded the badge “For Service.”

“He always worried about the safety of others more than his own, I told him not to be a hero, but it was not about him, because he was born a Hero. He wanted to live more than I did, he wanted to have a family, children, he had many dreams and plans for his life. He truly knew how to love like no one else, and he gave this love to everyone around him. He was indescribably brave and strong for his 21 years. I will remember you forever,” said Olesya Filimonchuk, a classmate and close friend of Danylo. 

The fighter was buried in his native village. Danylo is survived by his father, mother and sister.

*Danylo’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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