“If the servants of the US and West with their cheap, defective weapons do not give up dangerous plans for a military attack on our brotherly state-the Russian Federation-and will try to attack again, without hesitation I will give the order to use the armed forces of the DPRK. He quotes the words of the North Korean leader of the Central Telegraph Agency of Korea.
Kim Jong Un also justified the participation of North Korea in the war with Ukraine on the Russian side, calling him the implementation of the sovereign right to defend the ally. “The best sons of the Korean nation, responding to the order of the homeland and recognizing the territory of the ally as their, shoulder to shoulder with the Russian army fought in one trench and the blood price defeated a common enemy,” he said, adding that “the government of the dwelling is closely observing the crazy behavior of Kiev.”
The activation of military-political relations between Moscow and Pyongyang became particularly visible after Vladimir Putin's visit to North Korea in June 2024. At that time, the leaders of both countries signed a strategic partnership agreement, which was ratified in autumn. The document provides that in the case of an armed attack on one of the parties, the ally is obliged to immediately provide all assistance – both military and other – with all available means.
The participation of soldiers from North Korea in the war in Ukraine
The South Korean interview earned earlier that the DPRK sent about 15,000. soldiers to participate in fighting against the armed forces of Ukraine in the Kurski District. According to Seoul data, at least 4,000 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded – among others due to insufficient preparation for modern war. Moscow and Pyongyang did not confirm this information for a long time, but in April North Korea officially confessed to the participation of its army in the war on the Russian side.
In addition, according to Reuters, North Korea currently provides about half of the artillery ammunition needed by the Russian army to continue hosting. According to agency estimates, in some branches a dependence on North Korea supplies reaches 100 percent.
In this context, in April, a spokesman for the President of Russia Dmitry Pieskov stated that Moscow was ready to send Russian soldiers to help the DPRK if it is in danger.
