Latest news with #NorthKorea-Russia
Korea Herald
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
North Korean leader pledges ‘unconditional' support for Russia's war against Ukraine
Deployment of additional North Korean troops likely discussed in latest talks with top Russian diplomat, says expert North Korean leader Kim Jong-un assured Moscow's top diplomat that Pyongyang will fully support all actions taken by Russia in its war against Ukraine, the North's state media said Sunday. In a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov the previous day, Kim "reaffirmed that the DPRK is ready to unconditionally support and encourage all the measures taken by the Russian leadership as regards the tackling of the root cause of the Ukrainian crisis,' the KCNA said. DPRK is the acronym for North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The latest meeting between Kim and Lavrov came during the top diplomat's three-day visit to North Korea amid deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow. It also closely follows the US' decision to resume military supplies to Ukraine, including shipments of critical arms, after a brief pause. According to the KCNA, the talks between Kim and Lavrov touched on the topic of faithfully implementing the agreements made during the summit between the North Korean leader and Putin in June last year. Pyongyang and Moscow signed a partnership treaty last year, which includes a mutual defense pact. Lavrov, who delivered 'warm greetings' to Kim from Putin, expressed willingness to further bolster 'the strategic and tactical cooperation' between Pyongyang and Moscow. Though the KCNA did not report on any discussions of a potential North Korea-Russia summit, Russia's state agency Tass claimed Lavrov told Kim that Putin 'hopes for continued direct contact in the very near future.' South Korea's intelligence agency said the North has deployed some 13,000 troops and provided conventional weapons to Russia since October last year to support Moscow's war against Ukraine. Pyongyang is projected to send additional troops to Russia in July or August, according to the agency last month. Additionally, the South's Defense Intelligence Agency claimed that the North has so far provided some 28,000 containers of weapons and artillery shells, in a report submitted to a main opposition People Power Party lawmaker and released Sunday. When calculated in single 152 millimeter shells, this is believed to amount to 12 million rounds of such shells, the military intelligence agency under the Defense Ministry explained. Lavrov's second strategic dialogue with his North Korean counterpart Choe Son-hui, took place on the same day as the meeting between Kim and the top Russian diplomat. According to a statement released by Pyongyang, Lavrov and Choe vowed to advance their cooperation under a partnership treaty signed last year. Both meetings were held at the newly opened Kalma beach resort in the North's eastern coastal city of Wonsan. 'The issues of deploying some additional 6,000 North Korean troops to Russia, cooperation on advanced weapons technology and energy, as well as tourism, were likely discussed in Pyongyang's latest talks with Lavlov,' Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies, said. 'The additional deployment is projected to be a sign of an intensified war between Russia and Ukraine," he added. Russia has ramped up drone and missile attacks on Ukrainian cities in recent weeks, leading to record civilian casualties. Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
Korea Herald
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
N. Korea's Kim reaffirms unconditional support for Russia on Ukraine war: KCNA
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reaffirmed his unconditional support for all of Russia's actions in its war against Ukraine as he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the North's state media reported Sunday. Kim made the remarks in a meeting with Lavrov on Saturday, held a day after the Russian minister flew to North Korea for his second round of strategic talks with the North Korean counterpart, according to the Korean Central News Agency. During the talks, Kim and Lavrov discussed the faithful implementation of the agreements reached during Kim's summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Pyongyang in June last year, as well as ways to further develop the two countries' strategic partnership, the KCNA said. Kim "reaffirmed that the DPRK is ready to unconditionally support and encourage all the measures taken by the Russian leadership as regards the tackling of the root cause of the Ukrainian crisis" in line with the North Korea-Russia mutual defense treaty, the KCNA said. DPRK refers to the official North Korean name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The KCNA also quoted Kim as saying that "the two countries share the same views on all strategic issues in conformity with the level of (their) alliance and it shows the high strategic level established between the two countries." Lavrov praised the strategic communication between the two countries in diplomatic fields, expressing his intention to "further strengthen the strategic and tactical cooperation and intensify concerted action ... in the international arena," according to the report. The meeting reaffirmed the determination of the North Korean and Russian leaderships to "closely support and cooperate with each other in the journey for thoroughly safeguarding the core interests of the two countries (and) powerfully promoting the overall development of bilateral ties" under their comprehensive strategic partnership treaty, the KCNA said. The KCNA also reported that Lavrov conveyed Putin's "warm greetings" to Kim, who reciprocated with thanks and his own friendly greetings to the Russian president. An earlier Russian news report on the Kim-Lavrov meeting said that the Russian minister delivered Putin's message expressing hope for direct contact with Kim in the very near future. Meanwhile, the KCNA carried a statement from the strategic dialogue held the previous day between North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui and Lavrov. The statement reaffirmed the two countries' "unwavering" commitment to advancing North Korea-Russia relations into long-term strategic ties by faithfully implementing the mutual treaty. In the statement, Russia expressed "firm opposition" to any arbitrary attempts to deny North Korea's "current status," voicing unwavering support for Pyongyang's efforts to defend its national security and sovereign rights, while North Korea expressed unconditional support for all Russian actions in its war against Ukraine. "It has been confirmed that the two sides' assessments of the current complex international situation are identical," the statement said, pledging joint efforts to strengthen strategic communication and coordinate their shared stance. Aboard a private jet, Lavrov arrived in North Korea's eastern coastal city of Wonsan on Friday for a three-day trip through Sunday. Both of his meetings with Kim and Choe took place at the newly opened Kalma beach resort area in Wonsan. (Yonhap)
Korea Herald
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
N. Korea congratulates reelected chairman of central committee at Russian communist party
North Korea has sent a congratulatory message to the reelected chairman of the central committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, according to the North's state media on Monday. The North's Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea sent the message dated Saturday to Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov, who was unanimously reelected that day as chairman of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation's Central Committee, according to the Korean Central News Agency. "The WPK Central Committee sends its warm congratulations and comradely greetings on comrade Zyuganov's re-election," the message said. "We express confidence that the comradely and extraordinary friendship and cooperative relations between our two parties ... will proactively contribute to further developing North Korea-Russia relations into a full-fledged golden age," it said. The North Korean party also wished him success in carrying out his major projects. The exchange of the congratulatory message came as Pyongyang and Moscow have dramatically elevated bilateral cooperation in military, economic and other major fields following the signing of a mutual defense treaty in June last year. (Yonhap)
Hans India
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Hans India
North Korea's Kim Jong-un meets Russian culture minister
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has met with Russia's Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova in Pyongyang and discussed ways to further deepen cooperation in culture and the arts, the North's state media reported on Monday. The meeting took place on Sunday at the headquarters of the ruling party's Central Committee and was also attended by Russian Ambassador to North Korea Alexandr Matsegora, reports Yonhap, quoting the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Leading a culture ministry delegation, Lyubimova arrived in Pyongyang on Saturday at the invitation of the North's culture ministry to mark the first anniversary of the countries' comprehensive strategic partnership treaty. During the meeting, Kim appreciated the broad and in-depth exchanges and cooperation seen across various sectors since the treaty's signing, saying they have made tangible contributions to the mutual development and well-being of the two countries' peoples, the KCNA said. Kim also noted that exchanges in culture and the arts play a great role in strengthening the foundation of the public mindsets of the two countries and firmly consolidating the ties of friendship, comradeship and mutual understanding between the two countries' peoples. "It is important for the cultural sector to guide the relations between the two countries," the KCNA quoted him as saying. "It is necessary to further expand the exchange and cooperation in the field of culture and art to know well about each other's excellent cultural traditions and learn more." The North Korean leader, in particular, highlighted Lyubimova's visit, accompanied by Russian art troupes, as an important opportunity to broaden the North Korean people's understanding of Russian culture, expressing "belief that the current visit would further raise the militant comradeship and feelings of friendship between the two countries." The Russian culture minister said her visit came at a time when the "solidity and invincibility" of the North Korea-Russia friendship and solidarity are being demonstrated more clearly than ever, and bilateral cultural cooperation has reached its highest level ever, the KCNA reported. The two also discussed future plans for bilateral cooperation and exchanges in the cultural sector, and watched performances staged by visiting Russian art troupes and North Korean artists, the news agency added. Photos released by the KCNA showed that an image of North Korean forces deployed on the Russian side in the war against Ukraine was used as the stage's backdrop while Russian art troupes performed. Another image showed the forces waving the North Korean and Russian national flags while North Korean artists sang. Kim's daughter, known as Ju-ae, was seen next to him while the North Korean leader held a meeting with Lyubimova, marking her second presence at a major diplomatic event after accompanying him to an event at the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang in May. Separately, North Korea's Culture Minister Sung Jong-gyu held a meeting with Lyubimova the previous day at the Mansudae Assembly Hall, where they discussed in-depth ways to deepen cultural cooperation and exchanges, according to the KCNA. The two also signed an agreement on cultural cooperation between the two countries' culture ministries, effective from 2025-27. The meetings came as Pyongyang and Moscow have deepened bilateral cooperation across various fields, including culture and the military, since the signing of the mutual defence treaty on June 19, 2024, in Pyongyang.
Mint
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Mint
‘My dearest Comrade Putin,' North Korea's Kim Jong Un vows to support Russia, praises ‘genuine' bilateral ties
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, assured that his country will always support Moscow, state media KCNA reported on Thursday. Calling Putin his 'dearest comrade', Kim praised North Korea-Russia bilateral relations in a message for Russia Day. "It is an unshakable will of the government of the DPRK and of my own steadfastly to carry on the DPRK-Russia relations," Kim was quoted as saying. 'Today the traditional DPRK-Russia friendship has been further cemented thanks to the militant comradeship the service personnel of the two countries have forged at the cost of their blood in the just sacred war to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Russia; it has developed into an excellent model of indestructible, genuine relationship between comrades-in-arms and alliance,' he added. After months of silence, Pyongyang confirmed for the first time that it had sent troops to fight for Russia in the war in Ukraine under orders from leader Kim Jong Un earlier this year. The North Korean leader has consistently supported Russia. Earlier that Kim Jong Un promised to unconditionally support Putin. During a meeting in Pyongyang with Sergei Shoigu, a leading security aide to Putin, Kim stated that North Korea will 'unconditionally support' Russia and 'its foreign policies on all significant international political matters," KCNA reported. Both countries agreed to enhance their ties 'into the powerful and comprehensive relations of strategic partnership," it noted. In 2024, North Korea 'transferred to Russia at least 100 ballistic missiles, which were subsequently launched into Ukraine to destroy civilian infrastructure and terrorise populated areas such as Kyiv and Zaporizhzhia," reported Bloomberg News citing a report by a report by 11 countries, including the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada and Japan. The report also informed that Pyongyang 'deployed over 11,000 troops into eastern Russia in late 2024, which were moved to the far-western Kursk Oblast where they began engaging in combat operations alongside Russian forces in support of Russia's war against Ukraine.'
