North Korea pledges unwavering support for Russia in conflict
North Korea will support the Russian invasion of Ukraine "until victory", announced the head of the North Korean regime's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday. She added that the Russian army is "conducting a holy battle" against Kyiv. However, she did not mention anything about the thousands of North Korean soldiers who are reported to be in the Kursk region.
- We reiterate that we will always stand firmly by our Russian comrades until victory day - said the North Korean Foreign Minister, Choe Son-hui, as quoted by "The Moscow Times".
Choe Son-hui met with her counterpart Sergey Lavrov. The representative of Kim Jong Un's regime praised another dictator, Vladimir Putin.
We have no doubts that under the wise leadership of the honourable President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, the Russian army and the people will undoubtedly achieve a great victory in their holy fight to defend the sovereign rights and security of their state - she declared.
In response, Lavrov emphasised that Russia and North Korea maintain close relations, which involve, among other things, military and special services. According to him, "Moscow is grateful to its Korean friends for their principled stance on the events that took place in Ukraine".
North Korean soldiers in Ukraine
"The Moscow Times" notes that during the meeting, there was no mention of the presence of North Korean troops in Russia. According to Western sources, several thousand soldiers are in the Kursk region.
Most of the North Korean soldiers sent to Russia are young, around 20-year-old recruits who have recently been serving in the army, reported the South Korean daily "JoongAng", citing military sources. Moscow is expected to pay each soldier approximately £1,650 a month.
The United States and South Korea disclosed that in October, at least 3,000 soldiers were transported from North Korea to Russia. By the end of the year, Pyongyang is supposed to dispatch 10,000 military personnel there. On Thursday, Japanese and Ukrainian media reported that about 2,000 North Korean soldiers who completed training at ranges in the Russian Far East are being transported by train to the European part of the country, near the border with Ukraine.
