Pyongyang — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended a large welcoming ceremony on Friday for an army engineering unit that had returned home after carrying out duties in Russia, according to a report by the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The ceremony honored officers and soldiers of the 528th Regiment of Engineers of the Korean People’s Army (KPA), who were deployed overseas for about 120 days. KCNA said the unit was dispatched in early August and carried out both combat-related and engineering tasks in Russia’s Kursk region, an area that has seen heavy fighting during Moscow’s war with Ukraine.
In a speech reported by KCNA, Kim praised the regiment for what he called “heroic” conduct and “mass heroism,” saying the soldiers had faithfully carried out orders issued by the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea. He described their performance as a model for the entire armed forces, highlighting their discipline, unity, and political loyalty.
State-released video footage showed uniformed soldiers disembarking from an aircraft as crowds gathered to greet them. Kim was seen personally embracing returning troops, including hugging a wounded soldier seated in a wheelchair. Families of the soldiers, senior military officials, and top party leaders were also present at the event in Pyongyang, KCNA said.
Kim acknowledged casualties during the mission, stating that nine soldiers were killed, calling their deaths a “heartrending loss” for the country. He announced that the 528th Regiment would receive the Order of Freedom and Independence, one of North Korea’s top military honors. The nine fallen soldiers were posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, along with other state decorations.
The KCNA report said the regiment cleared dangerous areas under combat conditions, including mine-clearing operations, and demonstrated “absolute loyalty” to the party and the state.
Last month, Russia’s Defense Ministry said North Korean troops were playing an important role in clearing mines in the Kursk region after helping repel a major Ukrainian incursion. Under a mutual defense pact between Pyongyang and Moscow, North Korea is believed to have sent around 14,000 troops to support Russian operations in Kursk last year. South Korean, Ukrainian, and Western sources estimate that more than 6,000 North Korean soldiers were killed during the fighting, figures that differ sharply from Pyongyang’s official account.
North Korea has increasingly made public displays honoring troops involved in the Russia-Ukraine war. In recent months, state media have shown Kim meeting with officers involved in overseas missions and draping coffins with the national flag during ceremonies believed to mark the return of soldiers killed while fighting alongside Russian forces.
The latest ceremony underscores Pyongyang’s continued military cooperation with Moscow and its efforts to publicly recognize soldiers who took part in the conflict.
