NORTH KOREA – The North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, on Wednesday vowed to honestly implement the Russia-North Korea Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Kim made the pledge during his meeting with Russian security chief Sergei Shoigu in Pyongyang on Tuesday.

Pyongyang will “invariably and unconditionally support” Russia to defend its sovereignty, territorial integrity, and international justice against the “imperialist moves of hegemony,” Kim said.

North Korea deployed thousands of soldiers to aid Russia in the war against Ukraine, following the signing of the partnership pact by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim in Pyongyang in June 2024.

The pact requires extending military support in case either side is attacked by a third party.

Kim and Shoigu discussed and approved “some ideas and plans for conveying long the heroic feats displayed by soldiers of units of the Korean People’s Army in the operations for liberating the Kursk area.”

This was Shoygu’s second trip to Pyongyang in less than two weeks, visiting last time on June 4, as this month marks the first anniversary of the pact.

Shoigu said Tuesday that North Korea will send 6,000 personnel to Russia, including 1,000 combat engineers and 5,000 military builders, to assist in mine clearance and reconstruction efforts in the Kursk region, bordering Ukraine.

He added that two brigades comprising 5,000 military construction workers will be dispatched to help restore damaged infrastructure in the region.

Kim “confirmed” the contents of the treaty with Russia and accepted the “relevant plans and discussed in detail the necessary cooperation plans,” the KCNA reported.

However, South Korea Wednesday voiced “concern” over Pyongyang’s move to dispatch 6,000 armed personnel to Russia and said it was a “clear violation of the UN Security Council resolutions,” Yonhap News reported.

“We express deep concern over the continuing illegal cooperation between North Korea and Russia,” a Foreign Ministry official said in Seoul. “We urge the North to stop such actions immediately.”