Overview

• For the first time, KCTV broadcast Kim Jong-un draping flags over four to six coffins at a gala marking the first anniversary of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty with Russia
• The handful of coffins contrasted sharply with reports of more than 4,700 North Korean casualties on the Kursk front, leading analysts to view the display as largely symbolic
• Footage also revealed Kim’s approval of three “Liberation Operation Plan for Kursk” orders dated Oct. 22, Dec. 12 and Dec. 22, 2024, underscoring his hands-on role in battlefield strategy
• South Korea’s National Intelligence Service has warned that 6,000 combat engineers and construction personnel could deploy to Russia in July or August, though Seoul’s defense ministry reports no immediate troop movements
• Since October 2024, Pyongyang has sent about 15,000 troops and over 10 million artillery rounds and missiles to Russia under the pact, trading manpower for economic aid and advanced military technology in breach of UN sanctions