Seoul, South Korea - North Korean soldiers fighting in Russia's war against Ukraine have been told to kill themselves to avoid capture, a South Korean lawmaker said Monday, citing information from Seoul's spy agency.

"The deployment of North Korean troops to Russia has reportedly expanded to include the Kursk region, with estimates suggesting that casualties among North Korean forces have surpassed 3,000," lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun told reporters after a briefing from the spy agency.

This includes "approximately 300 deaths and 2,700 injuries," Lee said.

The soldiers, reportedly from North Korea's elite Storm Corps, have allegedly been ordered to take extreme measures to avoid being taken prisoner.

Russia Russia slams new US sanctions and accuses Biden of leaving Trump with "scorched earth"

"Notably, memos found on deceased soldiers indicate that the North Korean authorities pressured them to commit suicide or self-detonate before capture," he said.

He added that some of the soldiers had been granted "amnesty" or wanted to join North Korea's ruling Workers' Party, hoping to improve their lot by fighting.

One North Korean soldier who was about to be captured shouted "General Kim Jong-un" and attempted to detonate a grenade, Lee said, adding that he was shot and killed.

The NIS analysis also revealed that the North Korean soldiers have "a lack of understanding of modern warfare," and are being used by Russia in a manner leading to "the high number of casualties," the lawmaker claimed.

Over the weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Kyiv had captured two North Korean soldiers, releasing a video of the injured combatants being interrogated and raising the possibility of a prisoner swap for captured Ukrainian troops.

Ukraine, the US, and South Korea have accused North Korea of sending more than 10,000 soldiers to help bolster Russian forces.

The two countries have boosted their military cooperation since Russia launched its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.