In rare words assessing the state of the Russia-Ukraine war, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has blamed the United States for exacerbating and prolonging the death and destruction with an aim of inflicting strategic defeat on Russia.
He made the remarks on the occasion of the 77th anniversary of the Korean People’s Army, telling the gathering of his generals and top officers that US is blinded "by the wild ambition for establishing unipolar hegemony."
Starting last year North Korea injected troops into the conflict, based on a defense agreement with Moscow the summer prior, but reports are that the some 10,000 DPRK troops sent have been confined to assisting the defense of Russian territory in Kursk region.
Ukraine has recently said the North Koreans withdrew from the frontlines in Kursk, but now they are back, after taking possibly hundreds of casualties.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) cites of Kim that "He expressed serious concern over the reckless behavior of the US and Western group intentionally fostering the prolonged war for the unrealizable dream to deal a strategic setback to Russia."
Kim stressed that Pyongyang has fiercely opposed "any act of denying international justice and disturbing global peace and security."
He said that North Korea "will invariably support and encourage the just cause of the Russian army and people to defend their sovereignty, security and territorial integrity in keeping with the spirit of the treaty on the comprehensive strategic partnership between the DPRK and Russia."
Kim added that he expects that 2025 will see the Ukrainian conflict remain one of the two "main axis of the tense international situation" - identifying Gaza and also (now post-Assad) Syria "which have been the scene of global geopolitical conflicts and confrontation last year."
The North Korean leader said Washington's actions "are further increasing the danger of the outbreak of a new world war with a serious impact not only on international peace and security but also all other spheres of human activities."
The debris from North Korean, Iranian, and Russian missiles has revealed a startling fact: They are filled with newly produced Western electronics. https://t.co/A2TL0KvThI pic.twitter.com/ACFiMtrH0N
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Ukraine's President Zelensky has recently said that there is a global 'axis' conspiring against his country - which includes Iran and North Korea fighting alongside Russia. The Iranians have chiefly supplied suicide drones, and according to some reports, short and mid-range missiles for use against Ukrainian cities.
