Kim assured visiting Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu that Pyongyang will continue to back Moscow's foreign policy “unconditionally,” the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Thursday.
Kim reiterated his country's support during a meeting with Shoigu on Wednesday in Pyongyang, KCNA reported on Thursday, according to Press TV.
The North Koran leader also vowed to "responsibly" observe the articles of a mutual defense treaty signed by the two countries.
The two countries signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty in June last year.
Both sides agreed to develop bilateral ties in the framework of a "powerful and comprehensive relations of a strategic partnership."
Kim Jong-un emphasized North Korea's commitment to the terms of its bilateral treaty, repeating that his nation would continue its unwavering support for Russia in international affairs, including the war in Ukraine.
The North Koran leader expressed hope for the Russia's “eternal victory, prosperity, and happiness.”
On April 28, 2025, North Korea confirmed that it had sent troops to Russia under the mutual defense treaty to assist Moscow in the Ukraine war.
For his part, Shoigu voiced Moscow's gratitude for North Korea's help.
He thanked the nation for North Korean soldiers' sacrifices, specifically for their help in the recent liberation of Russia's Kursk region.
Shoigu praised their courage and heroism, empathizing that they fought as if defending their own country.
South Korean intelligence sources estimate that around 300 North Korean troops were killed fighting in Kursk, with 2,700 more injured.
Meanwhile, a US State Department spokesperson reiterated on Thursday that North Korea's troop deployment to Russia and Moscow's support to North Korea "must end."
"North Korea's military deployment to Russia and any support provided by the Russian Federation to the DPRK in return must end," Tommy Pigott, the department's principal deputy spokesperson said referring to North Korea with its formal name as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
Pigott said at a press briefing that country's like North Korea bear "responsibility" for the role they are playing in the war against Ukraine.
"We continue to be concerned about North Korea's direct involvement in the war," he added.
Meanwhile, as the Ukraine–Russia war escalated this week, peace negotiations between the two countries have reached a standstill.
Russia’s top negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said on Monday that the peace negotiations in Istanbul failed to reach a ceasefire. However, Moscow and Kiev agreed on the largest-ever prisoner swap.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that he doubted if there was any value in negotiating with Ukraine after deadly attacks on Russia that killed seven people and injured 115 more.
Also, two bridges in Russia's Bryansk and Kursk regions collapsed overnight on May 31 in what Russian authorities have described as terrorist attacks orchestrated by Kiev.
MNA
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