Russia’s State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin thanked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for what he described as Pyongyang’s role in the “liberation of Kursk,” following the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia’s southwestern region.
Volodin made the remarks during a visit to Pyongyang on Sunday, where a Russian delegation attended the opening of a memorial complex honoring those killed while supporting Russia’s military operations related to the war in Ukraine, AFP reported.
North Korea has reportedly sent thousands of soldiers, along with missiles, to support Russia’s war effort. The troops were deployed to the Kursk region to counter a months-long Ukrainian counteroffensive.
“Let me express words of gratitude to you, esteemed Comrade Kim Jong Un, and to the Korean people for their fraternal support in the liberation of Kursk,” Volodin said.
“Korean soldiers fought shoulder to shoulder with our soldiers and officers, liberating Russian soil from the Ukrainian Nazis,” he added, using language commonly employed by Russian officials to characterize Ukrainian forces and justify the full-scale invasion.
Analysts say Russia’s deepening military cooperation with North Korea has enabled Pyongyang to receive financial assistance, military technology, food, and energy supplies, helping it mitigate the effects of international sanctions imposed over its nuclear weapons program.
During Sunday’s meeting, Kim Jong Un also spoke with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov and expressed “belief that the Russian army and people would surely win a victory in the just sacred war,” Korean Central News Agency reported.
Both sides said their delegations had discussed deeper military ties, with Moscow ready to sign a cooperation plan covering the period from 2027 to 2031.
An estimated 2,000 North Koreans have been killed in the Ukraine war with most troops being instructed to kill themselves rather than be captured in battle.
Two North Korean soldiers are currently in the custody of Ukrainian authorities.