The Japan Times - Putin hails North Korean troops as 'heroic' in letter to Kim

In a letter marking the anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japanese rule, Putin recalled how Soviet Red Army units and North Korean forces fought together to end Japan's colonial occupation.

"The bonds of militant friendship, goodwill and mutual aid which were consolidated in the days of the war long ago remain solid and reliable even today," Putin said in a letter revealed by North Korean state media.

"This was fully proved by the heroic participation of the DPRK soldiers in liberating the territory of Kursk Region from the Ukrainian occupationists," he said, according to news agency KCNA.

"The Russian people will keep forever the memories of their bravery and self-sacrifice."

Putin added that the two countries would continue to "act jointly and effectively defend their sovereignty and make a significant contribution to establishing a just and multi-polarised world order."

Russia and North Korea have been forging increasingly closer ties, with the two countries signing a mutual defence pact last year, when Putin visited the reclusive state.

In April, North Korea confirmed for the first time that it had deployed a contingent of its soldiers to the front line in Ukraine, alongside Russian troops.

South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have said Pyongyang sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia's Kursk region in 2024, along with artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems.

Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, Seoul has said.

- 'Excellent soldiers' -

The letter from Putin came alongside a visit by a Russian delegation to Pyongyang, where the speaker of the Duma thanked Kim for sending "excellent soldiers" to Ukraine, KCNA reported.

Vyacheslav Volodin's delegation arrived Thursday and was received by a military honour guard for a visit marking "the 80th anniversary of Korea's liberation".

Volodin thanked Kim for "dispatching excellent soldiers to the Kursk liberation operations for driving out the Ukrainian aggressors", according to KCNA.

He added that Russia would never forget the North Korean troops "who fought at the cost of their lives in Russia."

Kim, meanwhile, said the delegation's visit would promote the "development of the DPRK-Russia relations already on a new level."

He also mentioned that he had a phone call with Putin two days ago, agreeing to expanded bilateral cooperation and "closer contact and communication between the state leaderships."

The call came three days ahead of Friday's summit between Putin and Trump, the first between a sitting US and Russian president since 2021, as Trump seeks to broker an end to Russia's more than three-year war in Ukraine.

K.Hashimoto--JT