Ukraine Releases Interrogation Video of Russian Prisoner of War
Complaints Emerge: "They Beat Russians and Steal Their Belongings"
A Russian soldier has testified that homosexuality is widespread within the North Korean military. A Russian prisoner of war captured in Ukraine claimed to have witnessed North Korean soldiers openly holding hands and kissing each other. Some analysts attribute this phenomenon to North Korea's system of long-term military service, which lasts more than a decade, and the closed nature of its military structure.
On August 6, Ukrainian journalist and soldier Yuriy Butusov released an interrogation video of a Russian prisoner on Telegram. In the video, the prisoner claimed that North Korean soldiers openly display same-sex relationships.
He said, "We were standing in line at the cafeteria when two North Korean soldiers walked by holding hands. Before parting ways, they kissed." He added, "They really kissed on the lips. At first, I even thought they were a man and a woman." The prisoner also stated, "I saw Koreans (North Koreans) at an inn, but Russian soldiers did not go in there," explaining, "This is because Russians believe North Korean soldiers have sexual relations with each other."
In fact, in 2015, two North Korean male soldiers were captured by our surveillance cameras in broad daylight embracing and appearing to kiss. Regarding this, Ahn Chanil, head of the World North Korea Research Center, said in an interview with a media outlet, "Judging by their uniforms, they appear to be officers. Because they serve in the military for more than 10 years and cannot go outside, they have no contact with women, so they seek liberation within the military through homosexual and similar sexual acts."
Defectors also explain that homosexuality within the North Korean military is more a form of sexual repression caused by long-term service than a matter of sexual orientation. Lee, a North Korean defector who served in the military in Pyongyang, said in an interview with BBC Korea last year, "Since there are no women at all in the military unit, when a good-looking young man joins, he is assigned a female role and desires are satisfied that way." He added, "It has nothing to do with sexual identity. It was not recognized as homosexuality, and no one thought it was strange."
Meanwhile, the prisoner also testified that dissatisfaction toward North Korean soldiers is growing within the Russian military. He said, "They shamelessly steal things. There was even an incident where a Russian soldier was beaten and his laptop was stolen by them as they fled." However, since Ukraine has conducted propaganda campaigns in various ways since Russia's invasion, it is difficult to clearly verify the authenticity of the video and statements released by Ukraine on this day.
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