“We have to get out of here!” the North Korean soldier cried out as his teammates agreed. The North Koreans waited until night to scatter like rats away from the frontlines; they disappear without a trace. “We have them captive and are dealing with them,” says the Russian high command, lying under their own breath. They know they haven’t found them yet; or will they be able to find them at all?

Four miles from the border of Ukraine in the Kursk and Bryansk oblast regions, approximately 18 North Korean soldiers have deserted the Frontlines. The Russian military is attempting to search for the North Korean soldiers whilst the commanders are attempting to cover it up and make it seem like nothing had happened at all.

The set of North Korean soldiers were supposed to set up a special “buryat” battalion where the Ukrainians have pushed into mainland Russia as an offensive attack. Kim jong-un is expected to send around 3,000 North Korean troops to the frontline in Russia to assist in pushing back the Ukrainians in that territory.

The newly formed “battalion” would be involved in combat missions in Russia’s southwest regions. Russia is expected to see more North Korean soldiers drop into the combat zone in the Kursk oblast region. Multiple North Korean officers were injured in rocket attacks and sent back to Moscow to be treated for their wounds.

North Korea has been an ally to Russia for decades, and even pleaded for a similar mutual agreement like NATO’s Article 5, called the “comprehensive strategic partnership pact,” which has a similar clause to Article 5: if one country is attacked, the other is considered attacked, too, and is obligated to assist in the “war.”