"North Korean Soldiers Engaged in Mine Clearance Operations," Russian Kursk Governor Reports

North Korea Deploys Troops to Kursk Again This Year, Following Last Year
Kursk Governor: "Involved in Mine Clearance Operations"
"Will Establish Sister-City Ties with Kaesong"... Closer Russia-North Korea Relations

Reports have emerged that North Korean soldiers deployed to the Russian front are being assigned to mine clearance operations. According to Yonhap News Agency on the 22nd (local time), citing Russia's TASS news agency, "Alexander Khinshtein, Governor of Kursk, mentioned in an interview with local media that North Korean representatives are playing a key role in mine clearance work in the border areas of the region." Governor Khinshtein stated, "They are deeply involved in the mine clearance efforts," adding, "This work is important for the future reconstruction and security of the region."

A photo taken in March showing Russian soldiers riding a self-propelled artillery in the Kursk region to help understand the article. Photo by AP Yonhap News Agency

According to Governor Khinshtein, the Kursk region is currently exposed to danger due to the presence of mines, unexploded ordnance, aerially dropped bombs, and shells scattered throughout the area. He added, "The camaraderie between Russian and North Korean residents has led us to form a special partnership with North Korea," and revealed plans for a sister-city agreement between Kursk and Kaesong as a symbol of deepening cooperative relations between Russia and North Korea.

As the war in Ukraine, which began with Russia's invasion, has dragged on, North Korea deployed a large military contingent last October to participate in the operation to recapture the southwestern Russian region of Kursk, which had been partially occupied by Ukrainian forces. More than 15,000 troops were dispatched, and it is reported that about 2,000 of them have been killed in action. Russia announced in April that it had fully retaken Kursk, and North Korea subsequently sent additional troops for mine clearance and reconstruction efforts in the region. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later awarded commendations to the deployed soldiers.

According to the Korean Central News Agency on the 22nd, a ceremony was held the previous day in Pyongyang where paper lantern boats, made by students in Kursk City, Russia, expressing "gratitude and respect" for the North Korean military, were floated on the Taedong River. Yonhap News Agency

According to Yonhap News Agency, on the 22nd, students from the Kursk region sent paper lantern boats containing "messages of gratitude" to the North Korean military. At an event held near the Taedong River in Pyongyang that day, Alexander Matsegora, Russian Ambassador to North Korea, was in attendance, and the children of embassy staff floated paper boats inscribed with phrases such as "Thank you," "We will win," and "Eternal friendship" in both Korean and Russian. The Korean Central News Agency evaluated the event as expressing "precious memories of the war heroes and wishes for their eternal life."

The dispatch of troops to Kursk has served to strengthen ties between Russia and North Korea. On the 11th, Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia and Chairman of United Russia, visited North Korea to attend the 80th anniversary celebration of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea. He stated, "The courage and sacrifice demonstrated by North Korean soldiers in the Kursk liberation operation have proven the strength of the fraternal bond, special trust, and the invincibility of the blood-forged alliance connecting our two countries," and added, "We will actively work to further strengthen exchanges and cooperation between the two parties and our two countries."