Fri Aug 15 18:00:20 UTC 2025: Here’s a summary of the text and a rewritten news article based on it:
**Summary:**
Russia and North Korea are strengthening their alliance, highlighted by President Putin’s praise for North Korean soldiers fighting in Ukraine. Putin sent a letter to Kim Jong Un commending the “heroic participation” of DPRK soldiers in liberating the Kursk region from Ukrainian forces. North Korea confirmed it deployed soldiers to the front lines in Ukraine earlier in the year. South Korean and Western intelligence estimates suggest a significant deployment, with casualties reported. A Russian delegation visited Pyongyang, thanking Kim for sending troops. This deepening alliance occurs as Putin prepares for a summit with President Trump aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.
**News Article:**
**North Korea’s Troops in Ukraine Hailed as “Heroic” by Putin as Alliance Solidifies**
**Seoul – August 15, 2025** – The deepening alliance between Russia and North Korea was further underscored today with Russian President Vladimir Putin praising North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. In a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, marking the anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japanese rule, Putin commended the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) soldiers’ “heroic participation” in liberating the Kursk region.
“The bonds of militant friendship, goodwill and mutual aid…remain solid and reliable even today,” Putin stated in the letter, as reported by North Korean state media KCNA. “This was fully proved by the heroic participation of the DPRK soldiers in liberating the territory of Kursk Region from the Ukrainian occupationists.”
North Korea confirmed earlier this year that it had deployed troops to the front lines in Ukraine. South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have estimated that Pyongyang sent over 10,000 soldiers to Russia’s Kursk region in 2024, along with artillery and missile systems. Seoul has reported that around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded.
The praise from Putin coincided with a visit to Pyongyang by a Russian delegation led by Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin. Volodin thanked Kim for sending “excellent soldiers” and assured him that Russia would never forget the North Korean troops “who fought at the cost of their lives in Russia.”
Kim responded by stating the visit would promote further development of DPRK-Russia relations and highlighting a recent phone call with Putin where they agreed to expanded bilateral cooperation.
The strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea comes as President Trump prepares for a summit with President Putin.
First Piper 