ARCHIVAL PHOTO: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un after state visit Vladimir Putin, Pjongjang, June 2024 © Kristina Kormilitsina / Sputnik
Russian president Vladimir Putin expressed his gratitude to North Korean soldiers and country leaders on Monday, Kim Jong Un, for the function they played in the opposition of the Ukrainian invasion.
The Russian military reported last week about the full liberation of the border areas of the Kursk region that Kiev occupied in August last year, admitting for the first time that North Korean troops participated in the operation."North Korean friends acted in a spirit of solidarity, justice and actual camaraderie" “Putin said in a statement.The Pjongjang mission was launched in connection with a bilateral treaty signed last June, which contains common defence clauses.“We appreciate heroism, the advanced level of specialized training and the courage of North Korean warriors who defended our homeland as their own, standing side by side with Russian militants” – added in the news.
"They did their work with honor and courage and covered themselves with timeless glory."Putin promised that North Korean soldiers who lost their lives in the mission would be honored "as equal to their Russian comrades in arms".Pyongyang commented on the deployment in Russia earlier that day, describing Ukrainian troops in the Kursk Oblast as forces ‘Neonazi’ and saying that it helped thwart “a violent political and military test by Western forces and Ukrainian authorities” reverse the destiny of the wider conflict in Ukraine.Ukrainian officials claimed that the invasion was intended to distract Moscow's forces from another parts of the front lines and to supply Kiev with an advantage in final peace talks in the form of captured Russian territory.
The Kremlin sees it as a provocation and an effort to further escalate war activities.The administration of the then US president Joe Biden claimed that Ukraine's usage of weapons handed down by the West against internationally recognized parts of Russia was justified by the presence of North Korean troops in that country.
Kiev had previously complained that restrictions on cross-border attacks hindered its military action.U.S. president Donald Trump accused Vladimir Zelenski of undermining his public efforts with attacks on proposals that Washington allegedly handed over to Kiev behind closed doors.
Translated by Google Translator
source:https://www.rt.com/russia/616413-north-korea-putin-thanks/
