TOKYO -- A boy from a Russian-occupied region of Ukraine spent the summer of 2025 in North Korea as a "Russian representative." Known as Misha, the boy was photographed in Pyongyang wearing a shirt in the colors of the Russian flag.

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Four years after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine , and 12 years since its annexation of Crimea and de facto control of parts of eastern Ukraine, Moscow's campaign to "Russify" Ukrainian children continues.

According to media and school reports in the occupied territories, Misha lives in Makiivka, in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region, which has been under Russian control since the spring of 2014. Misha reportedly passed a selection exam, was chosen to represent Russia and attended a camp in North Korea from July to August 2025.

Nikkei obtained a document believed to be a partial list of camp participants. In the entry containing Misha's name, his age was given as 13 and his place of residence was listed as the "Donetsk People's Republic," as Russian-controlled Donetsk is officially known.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a Washington-based research organization, says the sending of Ukrainian children to North Korea "reflects the extension of Russification and militarization efforts beyond Russia's borders."