Kim Jong Un takes part in the latest public event honoring North Korean troops who worked alongside Russian forces in the war against Ukraine.
Published on December 13, 2025
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hugs a wounded soldier in a wheelchair during a ceremony in the capital, Pyongyang. Served with the Russian army In the war against Ukraine.
The state-run Korean Central News Agency said on Saturday that Kim praised the “collective heroism” of the 528th Regiment of Engineers of the Korean People’s Army, who had served. Kursk region of Russia.
Recommended stories
4 List of itemsEnd of list
Kim praised the behavior of the regiment During his 120-day overseas deployment, which began in early August, and included combat and engineering duties, including mine clearing in Russia’s Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces had infiltrated and occupied for months before withdrawing.
According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, “You can perform the miracle of turning a vast area of danger into a safe and secure area in less than three months, a task that was thought to be impossible to accomplish in years,” Kim said.
“The armed villains of the West, whatever the latest military equipment, cannot match this revolutionary army’s unfathomable spiritual depth,” Kim added at the ceremony on Friday.
North’s leader also spoke of the “heartbreaking loss” of nine members of the regiment and announced that the unit would be awarded the Order of Freedom and Independence. The dead soldiers will be honored with the title of Hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, KCNA said, referring to North Korea’s official name.
Video footage of the ceremony released by North Korea showed uniformed soldiers disembarking and Kim hugging the wheelchair-bound soldier, as other soldiers and officials gathered to welcome the troops.
Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed last month that North Korean forces helping Russia repel Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk are now engaged in clearing the area of mines.
Concluding a key meeting of his ruling Workers’ Party of Korea on Thursday, Kim praised North Korea’s military deployment in support of Russia’s war on Ukraine, saying it had “shown the dignity of our military to the world”.
North Korea’s “ever-victorious army” was the “true guardian of international justice,” Kim said.
Under A Mutual Defense Agreement Between Moscow and Pyongyang, approximately 14,000 North Korean soldiers were deployed to fight for Russia, with between 3,000 and 4,000 killed or wounded.
A reception on Friday marked the latest event to publicly honor North Korean soldiers who served in Russia’s war on Ukraine.
In October, Kim was shown hugging weeping soldiers at a ground-breaking ceremony for a planned memorial to those who fought for Russia, and in June, state media showed Kim removing a flag-draped coffin in what appeared to be soldiers’ remains brought back from Russia.
