By Ananya Varma
North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un was left teary-eyed at an event in Pyongyang after he honoured the soldiers killed fighting for Russia. Images released by the North Korean media showed leader Kim Jong-un mourning over flag-draped coffins of North Korean soldiers killed while fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. Footage aired by Korean Central Television showed a solemn Kim placing a North Korean flag on one of the coffins during the ceremony. According to reports, Kim attended an event to mark the first anniversary of the signing of a new treaty between North Korea and Russia, known as the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty. The event took place during a visit by a Russian cultural delegation led by Russian culture minister Olga Lyubimova. Kim was accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae and other North Korean and Russian officials during the event. The nuclear-armed North has emerged as one of Russia’s key allies since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, sending thousands of troops and shipments of weapons to bolster the Kremlin’s efforts to drive Ukrainian forces from the Kursk border region, AFP reported. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded while fighting for Russia, according to South Korean lawmaker Lee Seong-kweun, who cited intelligence from Seoul’s spy agency.