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Kim Jong Un, the leader of North Korea, has recently lauded soldiers who chose to end their own lives rather than be taken as prisoners by Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region. This acknowledgment offers a stark confirmation of a battlefield strategy that officials and intelligence services have long scrutinized as one of Pyongyang’s most extreme approaches.
According to a report by Reuters, which cited North Korean state media outlet KCNA, Kim expressed admiration on Monday for those troops who opted for “self-destruction and suicide” over surrender. His remarks were made during a memorial ceremony attended by Russian officials and grieving families, commemorating North Korean soldiers who lost their lives in combat.
Kim stated, “It is not only the heroes who unhesitatingly chose the path of self-destruction and suicide to defend great honor, but also those who fell while charging at the forefront of assault battles.”
This is the first occasion where Kim has openly recognized the extreme measures taken by North Korean forces fighting alongside Russia to avoid capture by Ukrainian troops.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a photo session with officers and soldiers who participated in the 90th founding anniversary of the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army in North Korea on April 27, 2022. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service)
North Korea deployed an estimated 14,000 troops to Russia’s western Kursk region to support Moscow’s war effort, according to South Korean, Ukrainian and Western officials cited by Reuters. Those same officials say the forces suffered staggering losses, with more than 6,000 North Korean soldiers believed killed in some of the war’s most intense fighting.
For months, intelligence reports, battlefield evidence and defector testimony have pointed to a grim directive: North Korean troops were expected to detonate grenades or otherwise take their own lives rather than risk capture.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photo during a signing ceremony following bilateral talks in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 19, 2024. (Sputnik/Kristina Kormilitsyna/Kremlin via REUTERS)
That policy appears to have extended even to the few who survived. According to The Guardian, two North Korean soldiers captured by Ukrainian forces and now held as prisoners of war in Kyiv both reportedly attempted to blow themselves up but were unable to do so because of severe injuries. One of the captured soldiers has reportedly expressed guilt over failing to carry out those orders.
North Korean troops train with Russian instructors to clear mines in the heavily contaminated Kursk region, according to Russian Defense Ministry footage. (East to West News Agency)
Kim’s latest speech appears to transform those reports from battlefield allegations into publicly praised state doctrine.
“Those who writhed in frustration at failing to fulfill their duty as soldiers rather than suffering the agony of their bodies being torn apart by bullets and shells — these too can be called the party’s loyal warriors and patriots,” Kim added.
The statement underscores the ideological intensity imposed on North Korean forces, whose loyalty to the regime appears to extend beyond combat to self-destruction.
North Korean troops sweep minefields left behind in the Kursk region after months of fighting. (East to West News Agency)
The revelation also highlights the deepening military relationship between Pyongyang and Moscow.
According to South Korean intelligence assessments, North Korea has provided not only troops but also munitions to Russia, while receiving economic aid and military technology in return.