Overview
- Kim told Putin he would unconditionally support all of the Russian leader’s policies and decisions, calling the choice constant and permanent, according to KCNA.
- KCNA said Kim’s message responded to a congratulatory letter from Putin, while not specifying when the Russian note was delivered.
- State media reported recent leader-to-leader messages in which Kim said the two countries shared blood, life and death in the Ukraine war and Putin praised an invincible friendship.
- South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have reported that North Korea dispatched thousands of troops to support Russia’s war effort.
- Analysts say Pyongyang has supplied artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems to Russia, with Moscow providing financial support, military technology, food and energy in return.