North Korean leader meets families soldiers who died in the Russian war

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has met the families of soldiers who killed Russia against Ukraine, and expressed their “deep condolences,” state media says.

At the special ceremony, which took place on Friday, whom the comforting families of the dead were spotted and presented them with portraits of their dead loved ones wrapped in the North Korean flag.

South Korea believes that the North has sent about 15,000 troops to help the Russian war with Ukraine, as well as missiles and weapons. In return, it is believed that North Korea received food, money and technical assistance.

North Korea has only recognized its role in a foreign conflict in April, recognizing that some of its soldiers were killed.

In January, Western officials reported BBC They believed that at least 1000 troops sent from North Korea were killed in three months, with several thousand wounded, but later the estimates put the figure closer to 600 killed.

Friday’s ceremony was the second similar in a week. During the event, Kim stated that he was filled with “sadness” when he did not bring the soldiers back alive, promising to build a monument in their honor and care for his children.

“I thought a lot about the families of other martyrs who did not attend (at the previous ceremony) … So, I held this meeting when I wanted to meet and comfort the families of all heroes and save them from their sadness and suffering,” KKNA reports.

Next week, Kim should meet with Russian Vladimir Putin in China when he goes to attend a military parade that marks Japan’s surrender in World War II.

This will be their third meeting in two years at a time when Moscow and Pyongyang deepen its cooperation and relations between both countries, reached a new level.

Last October, Kim sent Russian leader Vladimir Putin to reports of his birthday, calling him the closest friend.

In the same month, Putin submitted a bill on ratification of the military pact, which he made with Kim, which promises that Russia and North Korea would help each other in the event of “aggression” against any country.

In North Korea, there may be about 1.28 million active soldiers, but as long as Ukraine unfolded its army, it did not have recent fighting abroad.