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Korea Herald
5 days ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
N. Korea set to celebrate 72nd anniversary of armistice signing
North Korea is set to hold a series of events Saturday to celebrate the 72nd anniversary of the signing of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War, the North's media reported. North Korea will hold celebrations for the anniversary to mark the country's victory in the Fatherland Liberation War in Pyongyang, and participants invited to the event arrived in the capital Thursday, according to the Korean Central Television. The media said nighttime fireworks, a parade and a variety of performances would be held in the capital. The Korean War, which started with an invasion by North Korea, ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, on July 27, 1953. Since 1996, North Korea has celebrated the armistice signing date as Victory Day, claiming that it won the Liberation War against US-led aggression. North Korea has used the anniversary to honor war veterans and reinforce internal unity. For this year's celebrations, authorities have invited war veterans and people with wartime merits, as well as officials, the media said. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has also sent gifts to war veterans on the occasion of the anniversary. Kim may attend the events, but it is unclear whether he will deliver a celebration speech. In 2023, North Korea held a military parade to mark the 70th anniversary by inviting then Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chinese Communist Party politburo member Li Hongzhong in an apparent move to show its solidarity with Beijing and Moscow, which backed Pyongyang during the war, as Seoul, Washington and Tokyo were bolstering three-way security cooperation. (Yonhap)
Hindustan Times
7 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
North Korea prepares for 'real war', Kim Jong Un's new orders amid Russia-Ukraine war
North Korea's Kim Jong Un has issued a new directive for the North Korean military amid the escalating attacks between Ukraine and Russia. As per state media reports on Thursday, the Supreme Leader has called on the North Korean military to 'prepare for real war' and 'be capable of destroying the enemy in every battle.' The two heavily sanctioned nations also signed a military deal last year.(AP File) The statement by Kim comes after North Korea's deployment of defence troops and weapons to aid Russia during its nearly 30-month-long offensive with Ukraine. State media had also reported earlier that Kim Jong Un had voiced 'unconditional support' for Moscow in the nation's war with Ukraine as a part of his recent talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Visuals from the state run Korean Central Television on Thursday showed army troops from artillery units firing shells towards the sea, with Kim looking through binoculars from an observation post. Although he was guarded by two military officials, the location of the event was not disclosed. North Korea extends its helping hand towards Moscow South Korean and Western intelligence agencies claimed that Pyongyang had sent more than 10,000 security troops to Russia's Kursk region in the last year. Alongside troops, it had also reportedly furnished multiple artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems. The Guardian quoted Ukraine's military intelligence agency saying that North Korea bolstered Russia's ammunitions and that it supplied 40% of the same used by Russia in its war against Kyiv, which in turn has dramatically increased arms production at home, with Moscow paying Pyongyang directly. Fighting in the war hit regions on the borders of the Russian territory, about 600 North Korean soldiers have reportedly lost their lives and several others have been wounded, South Korean officials at Seoul said. It was also reported that a North Korean KN-23 missile, which the country had designed to strike South Korean targets, had hit a residential building in Kyiv, killing 12 civilians. Global sanctions draw North Korea, Russia closer After North Korea ushered in support for Russia's offensive with Ukraine, Moscow has transferred advanced weaponry and has helped upgrade the accuracy of North Korea's KN-23 ballistic missiles, which have since targeted Ukrainian urban centres, said the report by The Guardian. The two heavily sanctioned nations also signed a military deal last year. The deal comprised a mutual defence clause, during a rare visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to North Korea's Pyongyang. (With agency inputs)
Daily Mail
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
North Korea holds national dog meat cooking competition with contestants from across the country
North Korea has held a national dog meat cooking competition in Pyongyang this week, state media revealed, with around 200 chefs from across the country. Each contestant gathered to showcase their skills in preparing the controversial dish known locally as 'sweet meat'. The event, organised by the regime and reported by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), took place at the Food Festival House on Ryomyong Street in the capital and ran for four days, beginning this Tuesday. Footage released by KCNA, showed chefs preparing a variety of dishes made from dog meat, including the nation's traditional dog meat soup or tangogi. The state–run Korean Central Television boasted that this year's competition drew double the number of contestants compared to last year, with participants travelling from all corners of the country. A city official quoted by the network described sweet meat soup as a 'traditional source of summer energy' and claimed the purpose of the cook–off was to 'elevate culinary standards and share know–how on cooking the meat.' Dog meat, long consumed in the North, is officially encouraged by the government as part of the country's limited diet. North Korea even registered sweet meat soup as a 'regional intangible cultural heritage' in 2022. The move contrasts starkly with neighbouring South Korea, where a law passed last year will make the breeding, distribution, and sale of dog meat illegal starting February 2027. The unusual contest comes as North Korea attempts to shine a spotlight on its culture and create a diversion from the country's chronic food shortages, which have long plagued the population. It also follows another unusual public display from the regime last month, when Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un unveiled a massive beach resort in Wonsan, a project long considered one of his pet ambitions. Photos released by state media showed the reclusive dictator touring the Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Area alongside his wife, Ri Sol Ju, who had not been seen for 17 months, and their daughter, Ju Ae, who many experts believe is being groomed as his successor. The luxurious resort, which features colourful water slides, swimming pools, high–rise hotels, and sunbeds, was completed nearly six years behind schedule due to the impact of the Covid–19 pandemic. Though originally launched in 2014, the project has only now been finalised and is set to open to domestic tourists on July 1. 'Kim Jong Un expressed belief that the wave of the happiness to be raised in the Wonsan Kalma coastal tourist area would enhance its attractive name as a world–level tourist cultural resort,' KCNA stated, adding that Kim was filled with 'great satisfaction' during the opening ceremony. Despite these lavish displays, foreign tourism to the nuclear–armed country remains highly restricted. North Korea reopened its borders in August 2023 after nearly four years of strict Covid closures, during which even returning citizens were barred from entering. Russian tourists were permitted to return for the first time since Covid and Western tour operators returned in February this year. Foreign tourists wanting to visit the super secretive North Korea can only do so under a supervised tour, through which guides have complete control over visitors will see. Russia and North Korea have agreed to expand cooperation on tourism, restarting a direct passenger train service between their capitals for the first time since 2020.
New York Post
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Kim Jong Un throws himself on coffin of North Korean soldier killed fighting for Russia in bizarre TV show
Diminutive North Korean leader Kim Jong un was shown throwing himself on a coffin of a soldier who was killed fighting for Russia in a bizarre patriotic TV show on state media Monday. The program showed North Korean and Russian officials weeping as they viewed footage of Kim kneeling over a flag-draped casket of one of the hundreds of Koreans he had sent into Moscow's meat grinder in Ukraine. Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova traveled to Pyongyang for the TV show and she spoke glowingly about the sacrifices of North Korean troops for the Russian cause. 5 Kim Jong Un was shown mourning over the coffins of North Korean soldiers killed helping Russia in the Kursk region. Korean Central Television (KCTV)/AFPTV/AFP via Getty Images 5 The show was the first public acknowledgment from Kim about his army's role in the Ukraine invasion. Reuters At one point in the program, the camera panned from the video of Kim in the audience, who appeared to be stoically overcome with emotion at the images of fallen DPRK soldiers being shown on a giant screen. As part of the show, the state also displayed a blood-stained notebook that was allegedly retrieved from a slain soldier on the Russian battlefield. 'The decisive moment has finally come,' one of the pages read, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency. 'Let us bravely fight this sacred battle with the boundless love and trust bestowed upon us by our beloved Supreme Commander,' it added, referring to Kim. About 600 Pyongyang soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting against Kyiv after Kim deployed some 12,000 soldiers to help Russia regain control of the Kursk region, according to Ukrainian and South Korean intelligence. 5 The show was meant to highlight the sacrifices North Korea was willing to make as part of its partnership with Russia. Korean Central Television (KCTV)/AFPTV/AFP via Getty Images 5 Spectators in the crowd were seen weeping over the performance in the totalitarian state. Reuters The show was a rare public tribute from Kim, but it also served to highlight the first anniversary of the military treaty between Pyongyang and Moscow. North Korea has previously shied away from acknowledging its military cooperation with Russia, which includes shipping thousands of soldiers and munitions to help Moscow invade Ukraine. Monday's broadcast, however, appeared to demonstrate a change in tactics for Pyongyang, with North Korea's KCNA news agency touting the display as a show to inspire confidence in the 'ties of friendship and the genuine internationalist obligation between the peoples and armies of the two countries that were forged at the cost of blood.' 5 It's been over a year since Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un signed a military partnership agreement allowing the flow of arms and troops between the two nations. AP In exchange for expendable soldiers and weapons, Russia has gifted Kim at least one Pantsir mobile air defense system, a medium-range surface-to-air interceptor and anti-aircraft weapon, according to a May report from the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team, a group comprising 11 United Nation members observing the sanctions against Pyongyang. North Korea also received a Pantsir-class combat vehicle, electronic warfare jamming devices and other military equipment to bolster Kim's defense systems, according to the report. MSMT found that Moscow also 'supported North Korea's ballistic missile programs by providing data feedback… leading to improvements in missile guidance performance.' With Post wires
Boston Globe
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Russia-Ukraine war comes home to North Korea
It is also part of an effort to ensure the pact, which has made North Korea useful to a world power for the first time in decades, endures, analysts say. Advertisement 'Once the decision was made [to send troops to help Russia], he has been very consistent' in his messaging, said Fyodor Tertitskiy, an expert on North Korea's history and military at Seoul's Kookmin University. 'They are trying to show all possible optics in hopes that Russia won't abandon them once the war is over.' Kim has become one of Putin's staunchest supporters since the start of the war in Ukraine more than three years ago, which left the Russian leader clamoring for troops and munitions, and the North Korean in the unusual position of having assets that someone else wanted. Kim dispatched some 12,000 troops to fight in Russia's western region of Kursk last year, and thousands of them died, according to US, Ukrainian, and South Korean officials. This helped Moscow retake the region, and Russia has thanked North Korea for helping 'in the operation to liberate' Kursk. Advertisement North Koreans were highly motivated on the battlefield and tended to fight to the death or kill themselves with grenades rather than be captured, according to Ukrainian soldiers. Kim may be preparing to send thousands more within the next two months, the South Korean intelligence agency said last week. The decision to send North Korean soldiers to fight for Moscow was an unusual move for a country perennially preparing for invasion from its enemies. North Korea is also believed to have sent large amounts of munitions, including artillery shells, to Russia. North Korea held a commemoration in Pyongyang on Sunday, the anniversary of Putin's summit with Kim in North Korea's capital, where the two leaders signed a landmark strategic and military treaty. As Russians and North Koreans performed onstage to orchestral music, a giant screen displayed images and videos relating to North Korea's dispatch of troops to Russia, and Kim was pictured with about a half-dozen coffins with the North Korean flag draped over them. A somber Kim hunched over in front of one coffin and placed both hands on it, appearing to pay tribute to the repatriated remains of the soldiers who were sent to Russia, according to footage aired on Korean Central Television. The state media footage also showed Russian officials at the event crying and wiping their eyes. The performances celebrated the 'militant ties of friendship and the genuine internationalist obligation between the peoples and armies of the two countries that were forged at the cost of blood,' state media outlet Korean Central News Agency said. Advertisement The report, using the abbreviation for North Korea's official name, claimed the 'annals of the DPRK-Russia friendship will last forever along with the history of victory.' A Russian delegation led by Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova and the staff of the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang attended, along with senior party and government officials, KCNA reported. South Korea's intelligence agency said Kim appears to have sent additional troops to Russia earlier this year. South Korean lawmakers briefed by the spy agency said those additional troops may total about 4,000 soldiers. Top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu made two visits to Pyongyang last month, which were made on 'special instructions' from Putin, according to Russian state-run news agencies. Russian media reported after Shoigu's trips that Pyongyang plans to send about 5,000 military construction workers and 1,000 land mine removal workers to Kursk. Those 6,000 workers could leave as early as this month, the spy agency told lawmakers last week. North Korea has already begun recruiting soldiers to be sent to Russia, the lawmakers said, citing the intelligence service. Kim has hailed the 'excellent soldiers' for their 'heroic feats' in the Kursk region, saying in April the men 'who fought for justice are all heroes and representatives of the honor of the motherland.' Kim also vowed to establish a monument in Pyongyang in their honor.
