North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has once again voiced his unwavering support for Russia’s war in Ukraine during a meeting held Wednesday in Pyongyang with Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu, according to North Korea’s state news agency KCNA.
During the talks, Kim expressed his firm backing of Russia’s stance and foreign policy, not only on Ukraine but also on what he called “all crucial international political issues,” according to the agency’s report.
In recent years, ties between Moscow and Pyongyang have grown significantly stronger. As part of this deepening alliance, North Korea has reportedly sent thousands of troops to Russian territory to aid in military operations against Ukraine. A large number of these troops are believed to have been deployed to Russia’s Kursk region, parts of which were briefly retaken by Ukrainian forces during a surprise offensive last August.
According to Russia’s state-run news agency Tass, Kim and Shoigu also discussed the reconstruction of damaged areas in the Kursk region, which Russia claimed to have fully recaptured in April. However, Ukraine maintains that it still has troops active in the area.
The meeting also included discussions on commemorating the contributions of North Korean soldiers. Initial suspicions about Pyongyang’s military involvement emerged in late 2024, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and South Korean officials accused North Korea of sending troops to support Moscow. It wasn’t until April of this year that both the Russian and North Korean governments officially confirmed the deployment of North Korean soldiers on the battlefield.
The military partnership between Moscow and Pyongyang has sparked strong international concern. Just last week, a monitoring group composed of South Korea, the United States, Japan, and eight other nations labeled the cooperation “illegal”, asserting that it violates United Nations sanctions.
The group’s report warned that the alliance is enabling North Korea to fund its banned ballistic missile program, and raised alarms over the potential transfer of advanced Russian military technology that could bolster Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons capabilities.
