Latest news with #Shoigu
Kyodo News
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Kyodo News
Kim says North Korea to "unconditionally support" Russia in Ukraine war
KYODO NEWS - 11 hours ago - 12:27 | World, All North Korean leader Kim Jong Un told a top Russian security official Wednesday that Pyongyang will "unconditionally support" Moscow's foreign policy, including its war in Ukraine, and further solidify the bilateral partnership, according to state-run media. During the meeting in Pyongyang, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu expressed gratitude for North Korean soldiers' "matchless heroism and self-sacrificing spirit" in operations to liberate the Kursk region, the official Korean Central News Agency said. They "defended the precious part of the Russian territory as their own motherland, fighting shoulder to shoulder with Russian soldiers in the same trench," Shoigu was quoted as saying. Ukraine mounted a surprise offensive in the Kursk region in August last year. Kim and Shoigu, who met at the ruling Workers' Party of Korea headquarters, also discussed "a series of important matters for defending the common core interests," the report said without elaborating. Moscow and Pyongyang have been boosting military cooperation recently, with North Korea sending troops to aid Russia in its invasion of Ukraine. Pyongyang is believed to have received technical assistance from Moscow for the development its military capabilities. Shoigu's trip to North Korea came before the first anniversary on June 19 of the signing of a bilateral comprehensive partnership treaty by Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Pyongyang. The pact includes a clause covering mutual assistance in cases of aggression against either country. Putin has expressed his desire to hold a summit with Kim in Moscow, but KCNA did not mention whether Shoigu discussed the matter with the North Korean leader. Shoigu last met with Kim during his visit to Pyongyang in March. Related coverage: North Korea confirms troop deployment to Russia under bilateral pact Russia acknowledges North Korea troops fighting Ukraine war for 1st time
Eyewitness News
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
North Korea's Kim vows 'unconditional support' for Russia's war in Ukraine
SEOUL - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to "unconditionally support" Russia in its war in Ukraine and said he expected Moscow to emerge victorious, Pyongyang's state media reported Thursday. North Korea has become one of Moscow's main allies during its more than three-year Ukraine offensive, sending thousands of troops and container-loads of weapons to help the Kremlin oust Ukrainian forces from Russia's Kursk border region. Meeting top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu on Wednesday, Kim said that Pyongyang would "unconditionally support the stand of Russia and its foreign policies in all the crucial international political issues including the Ukrainian issue", the Korean Central News Agency reported. Kim "expressed expectation and conviction that Russia would, as ever, surely win victory in the sacred cause of justice", KCNA said. The two sides agreed to "continue to dynamically expand" relations, the state news agency reported. Russia and North Korea signed a sweeping military deal last year, including a mutual defence clause, during a rare visit by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to the nuclear-armed North. Shoigu hailed the deal as "fully meeting the interests of both countries" during a visit in March. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, according to South Korean lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun, citing the country's intelligence service. North Korea in April confirmed for the first time that it had deployed troops to Russia to support Moscow's war in Ukraine - and admitted that its troops had been killed in combat. South Korea has also accused the nuclear-armed North of sending significant volumes of weapons, including missiles, to help Russia's war effort. DRONE ATTACK The meeting between Kim and Shoigu in Pyongyang came the same day the North's arch-enemy South Korea swore in new president Lee Jae-myung. In a speech upon taking office Wednesday, Lee vowed to reach out to the North - a marked departure from his hawkish predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol, under whom relations plummeted to their worst level in years. Lee said Seoul would "deter North Korean nuclear and military provocations while opening communication channels and pursuing dialogue and cooperation to build peace on the Korean Peninsula". KCNA reported on Lee's inauguration in a two-line report on Thursday but did not respond to his overtures for talks. But while Russia and the North are deepening ties, "prospects for restoring inter-Korean ties grow increasingly remote", Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University, told AFP. Shoigu's visit, his second in three months, also came just days after Ukraine launched a major drone strike on Russia, which "underscores the urgency of high-level coordination on security matters". "From Pyongyang's perspective, active participation in countering drone threats could serve as a stepping stone to enhance its capabilities in modern warfare - suggesting North Korea may take a more assertive role in military cooperation with Russia," said Lim. 'DEEPENING TIES' A multilateral sanctions monitoring group including South Korea, the United States, Japan and eight other countries last week condemned ties between Russia and North Korea as "unlawful". According to the group, Russian-flagged cargo vessels delivered as many as "nine million rounds of mixed artillery and multiple rocket launcher ammunition" from North Korea to Russia last year. In return, "Russia is believed to have provided North Korea with air defence equipment and anti-aircraft missiles", it said. It also issued a commentary Thursday slamming French President Emmanuel Macron over "imprudent" comments on Pyongyang's ties with Moscow, calling them "shocking claptrap". The commentary by analyst Choe Ju Hyun took aim at comments by the French leader during the recent Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. Macron suggested that the NATO defence alliance could become involved in Asia if China did not do more to press North Korea to stop sending forces to help Russia's war in Ukraine. "It is a mistake if Macron thinks that he can cloak NATO's aggressive and wicked intention to put dirty military shoes on the Asia-Pacific region by taking issue with the DPRK-Russia cooperative relations," the commentary said, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Kim Jong Un reaffirms 'unconditional' support for Russia's war in Ukraine during Shoigu visit
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed his country's full support for Russia's war against Ukraine during a meeting with Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu in Pyongyang, North Korean state news agency KCNA reported on June 5. Kim reportedly told Shoigu that North Korea "unconditionally supports the stand of Russia and its foreign policies." He also emphasized Pyongyang's continued commitment to the 2024 Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement signed with Moscow. That treaty, signed by Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 19, 2024, commits both countries to provide assistance if either is attacked. Kim previously described the pact as having a 'peaceful and defensive nature,' framing it as a formal security guarantee between the longtime partners. Shoigu, on his second visit to Pyongyang since being appointed secretary of the Russian Security Council, reportedly discussed battlefield developments in Russia's Kursk Oblast, including the role of North Korean soldiers deployed in the region. According to the Russian Security Council's official readout, the two sides discussed "perpetuating the memory of the feat of Korean soldiers." Officials estimate that up to 12,000 North Korean troops have been deployed to Russia's Kursk Oblast since last fall to counter Ukraine's cross-border incursion launched in August 2024. President Volodymyr Zelensky previously reported that North Korean forces fighting for Russia had suffered 4,000 casualties, with two-thirds of the losses being soldiers killed. Shoigu, who served as Russia's defense minister until his dismissal in May 2024, now oversees national security matters as secretary of the Russian Security Council. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Shoigu on June 25, 2024, for his role in leading Russia's war effort. Read also: Putin rejects Zelensky's call for peace talks, accuses Ukraine of deadly bridge attack in Russia We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Iraqi News
13 hours ago
- General
- Iraqi News
North Korea's Kim vows 'unconditional support' for Russia's war in Ukraine
INA- SOURCES North Korea has become one of Moscow's main allies during its more than three-year Ukraine offensive, sending thousands of troops and container-loads of weapons to help the Kremlin oust Ukrainian forces from Russia's Kursk border region. Meeting top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu on Wednesday, Kim said that Pyongyang would "unconditionally support the stand of Russia and its foreign policies in all the crucial international political issues including the Ukrainian issue", the Korean Central News Agency reported. Kim "expressed expectation and conviction that Russia would, as ever, surely win victory in the sacred cause of justice", KCNA said. The two sides agreed to "continue to dynamically expand" relations, the state news agency reported. Russia and North Korea signed a sweeping military deal last year, including a mutual defence clause, during a rare visit by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to the nuclear-armed North. Shoigu hailed the deal as "fully meeting the interests of both countries" during a visit in March. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, according to South Korean lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun, citing the country's intelligence service. North Korea in April confirmed for the first time that it had deployed troops to Russia to support Moscow's war in Ukraine -- and admitted that its troops had been killed in combat. South Korea has also accused the nuclear-armed North of sending significant volumes of weapons, including missiles, to help Russia's war effort. The visit was Shoigu's second to Pyongyang in less than three months. Deepening ties A multilateral sanctions monitoring group including South Korea, the United States, Japan and eight other countries last week condemned ties between Russia and North Korea as "unlawful". According to the group, Russian-flagged cargo vessels delivered as many as "nine million rounds of mixed artillery and multiple rocket launcher ammunition" from North Korea to Russia last year. In return, "Russia is believed to have provided North Korea with air defence equipment and anti-aircraft missiles", it said. The meeting between Kim and Shoigu in Pyongyang came the same day the North's arch-enemy South Korea swore in new president Lee Jae-myung. In a speech upon taking office Wednesday, Lee vowed to reach out to the North -- a marked departure from his hawkish predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol, under whom relations plummeted to their worst level in years. Lee said Seoul would "deter North Korean nuclear and military provocations while opening communication channels and pursuing dialogue and cooperation to build peace on the Korean Peninsula". KCNA reported on Lee's inauguration in a two-line report on Thursday but did not respond to his overtures for talks. It also issued a commentary Thursday slamming French President Emmanuel Macron over "imprudent" comments on Pyongyang's ties with Moscow, calling them "shocking claptrap". The commentary by analyst Choe Ju Hyun took aim at comments by the French leader during the recent Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. Macron suggested that the NATO defence alliance could become involved in Asia if China did not do more to press North Korea to stop sending forces to help Russia's war in Ukraine. "It is a mistake if Macron thinks that he can cloak NATO's aggressive and wicked intention to put dirty military shoes on the Asia-Pacific region by taking issue with the DPRK-Russia cooperative relations," the commentary said, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Kyodo News
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Kyodo News
Kim says North Korea to "unconditionally support" Russia in Ukraine war
KYODO NEWS - 2 hours ago - 12:27 | World, All North Korean leader Kim Jong Un told a top Russian security official Wednesday that Pyongyang will "unconditionally support" Moscow's foreign policy, including its war in Ukraine, and further solidify the bilateral partnership, according to state-run media. During the meeting in Pyongyang, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu expressed gratitude for North Korean soldiers' "matchless heroism and self-sacrificing spirit" in operations to liberate the Kursk region, the official Korean Central News Agency said. They "defended the precious part of the Russian territory as their own motherland, fighting shoulder to shoulder with Russian soldiers in the same trench," Shoigu was quoted as saying. Ukraine mounted a surprise offensive in the Kursk region in August last year. Kim and Shoigu, who met at the ruling Workers' Party of Korea headquarters, also discussed "a series of important matters for defending the common core interests," the report said without elaborating. Moscow and Pyongyang have been boosting military cooperation recently, with North Korea sending troops to aid Russia in its invasion of Ukraine. Pyongyang is believed to have received technical assistance from Moscow for the development its military capabilities. Shoigu's trip to North Korea came before the first anniversary on June 19 of the signing of a bilateral comprehensive partnership treaty by Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Pyongyang. The pact includes a clause covering mutual assistance in cases of aggression against either country. Putin has expressed his desire to hold a summit with Kim in Moscow, but KCNA did not mention whether Shoigu discussed the matter with the North Korean leader. Shoigu last met with Kim during his visit to Pyongyang in March. Related coverage: North Korea confirms troop deployment to Russia under bilateral pact Russia acknowledges North Korea troops fighting Ukraine war for 1st time
