Overview

• State media on Friday aired images of Kim Jong-un pinning medals on returning soldiers, embracing an emotional fighter, and kneeling before portraits of those killed.
• KCNA reported that Kim delivered warm encouragement to personnel serving in Russia’s Kursk region and hailed a “heroic” army.
• North Korea previously acknowledged sending a frontline contingent alongside Russian forces, while South Korean and Western agencies report large shipments of artillery, missiles, and long‑range rocket systems.
• Seoul estimates about 600 North Korean troops have been killed and thousands wounded while fighting for Russia, figures not confirmed by Pyongyang.
• Bilateral ties have tightened since a 2024 mutual‑defense pact, and Vladimir Putin recently praised North Korean units as “heroic” as broader diplomatic efforts to end the war persist.