Kim Jong Un praises the "heroes" from his forces who fought in Ukraine alongside Russia

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un praised on Thursday, August 21, those he referred to as "heroes" from his country's soldiers who participated in combat operations to support Russia in its war against Ukraine, during his reception of foreign operations officers in the armed forces.

This came according to the official Korean Central News Agency, which reported that Kim "expressed his great appreciation for their achievements in leading the combat units of our armed forces and achieving victory and participating in the liberation operations of the Kursk region in the Russian Federation".

This praise comes as part of strengthening the military alliance between Pyongyang and Moscow, which peaked with the signing of a "strategic partnership treaty" by leader Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin in June of last year, which includes an important clause for mutual defense between the two countries.

In related news, previous intelligence reports revealed that North Korea sent more than 10,000 soldiers to participate in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, while the latest assessments from South Korean intelligence concluded that Pyongyang plans to deploy additional waves of troops to support the Russian war effort.