North Korea’s Kim Jong Un tells youth: fight for Russia after 6,000 soldiers killed

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called on citizens aged 14 to 30 to act as the “vanguard” of state goals, urging them to fight for Russia in its war against Ukraine. The demand came during a youth congress in Pyongyang, as the ruling party praised dead soldiers as “bombs and flames.” Analysis suggests North Korea has lost around 6,000 troops in the Kursk region of western Russia. The speech marks a rare, direct appeal to young people to join a foreign conflict, framing their participation as a national duty.