Back from Russia: Kim welcomes his troops and praises their loyalty
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un praised a military engineering unit that has returned home after taking part in an overseas mission in Russia.
The move reflects the continuation and deepening of military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim attended on Saturday an official reception ceremony for a unit of the Korean People’s Army engineering corps. He highlighted what he described as the “heroic conduct” and “collective courage” shown by officers and soldiers of the 528th Regiment during the execution of their missions, which lasted around 120 days and were carried out in compliance with directives from the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea.
Footage broadcast by state media showed the unit’s soldiers upon their return to Pyongyang, with Kim welcoming them and embracing one wounded soldier, amid a large official and public turnout.
According to the agency, the unit was deployed in early August and carried out combat and engineering tasks in Russia’s Kursk region, which has witnessed clashes as part of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
Last month, Russia’s Ministry of Defense announced that North Korean forces had helped repel a large-scale Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region and are currently involved in demining and clearing areas affected by fighting.
Estimates from South Korean, Ukrainian and Western sources suggest that North Korea has sent around 14,000 troops, under a mutual defense agreement with Russia, to fight alongside Russian forces in Kursk, with more than 6,000 reportedly killed in the battles.
In his address during the ceremony, Kim Jong-un announced the death of nine soldiers from the regiment during the mission, describing the loss as “painful,” and decided to award the unit the Order of Freedom and Independence. The nine fallen soldiers were also posthumously granted the title of “Hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” along with other official decorations.
The reception ceremony was held on Friday in the presence of senior military commanders, ruling party officials and the soldiers’ families. Kim stated that the unit’s performance reflected “absolute loyalty” to the party and the state, considering their experience a model to be emulated within the North Korean armed forces.
This step is part of Pyongyang’s ongoing approach to honoring soldiers who have taken part in operations alongside Russia. Kim has previously praised fighters and officers returning from overseas missions, while state media have aired footage of official ceremonies honoring war casualties, signaling that North Korea’s involvement in the conflict has entered an unprecedented and openly acknowledged phase.
