Kim paid public tribute to North Korean soldiers killed in Russia’s war against Ukraine, part of an effort to cement the two countries’ strategic defense pact.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has publicly honored his country's soldiers killed while fighting in Russia's war against Ukraine, in a rare acknowledgment by Pyongyang of its battlefield losses, the Guardian reported on July 1.

Images show Kim Jon Un placing national flag over coffins, most likely carrying remains of North Korean soldiers deployed in war with Ukraine - Anadolu Ajansı