Kim Jong-un: North Korea’s ‘invincible alliance’ with Russia marks New Year
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has lauded his nation’s troops deployed abroad, characterizing their involvement as instrumental in forging an “invincible alliance” with Russia. In a New Year’s message disseminated by state media, Kim expressed deep sentiment for soldiers fighting in what he described as an “alien land,” commending their “heroic” defense of national honor and urging them to “be brave.”
According to South Korean and Western intelligence agencies, Pyongyang has dispatched thousands of its soldiers to support Russia’s ongoing conflict in Ukraine. These deployments have reportedly resulted in significant casualties, with South Korean estimates indicating at least 600 deaths and thousands of injuries among North Korean personnel.
This deepening partnership with Russia is seen by analysts as providing a crucial economic lifeline for Kim’s regime. In exchange for its military support, North Korea is believed to be receiving financial assistance, advanced military technology, and essential supplies of food and energy from Russia. This alliance also appears to have allowed Kim to sidestep diplomatic overtures from the United States and South Korea.
Kim’s message, relayed by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), conveyed a sense of longing for the soldiers during the festive New Year period, stating, “As the whole country is enveloped in a festive atmosphere of greeting the new year, I all the more miss you, who are fighting bravely on the battlefields in the alien land even at this moment.” He emphasized the backing of both Pyongyang and Moscow, urging the troops to fight “for the fraternal Russian people” and hinting at future overseas engagements.
Images released by KCNA showed Kim celebrating the new year with a large-scale performance and speech at Pyongyang’s May Day stadium, accompanied by his wife, Ri Sol Ju, and his daughter, Ju Ae, who is widely considered his likely successor.
However, accounts from the ground paint a starkly different picture for North Korean soldiers involved in the conflict. Reports from South Korea’s intelligence service and testimonies from two captured North Koreans suggest a grim reality. The captured soldiers, who sustained injuries and were taken prisoner by Ukraine in January 2025, have expressed a desire to defect to South Korea, indicating they were ordered by Pyongyang to take their own lives rather than be captured.
– Craig Wilson (huh0303@gmail.com)
