{"id":37636,"date":"2026-06-01T14:10:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T14:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/37636\/"},"modified":"2026-06-01T14:10:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T14:10:08","slug":"north-korea-uses-russia-parade-to-push-war-ideology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/37636\/","title":{"rendered":"North Korea uses Russia parade to push war ideology"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"North<\/a>The Workers’ Party of Korea’s official newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported May 10, 2026, that a combined Korean People’s Army army, navy, and air force contingent participated in the 81st Victory Day parade in Moscow’s Red Square on May 9. Photo: Rodong Sinmun\/News1<\/p>\n

North Korea used its military\u2019s participation in Russia\u2019s Victory Day<\/a> parade to conduct ideological indoctrination sessions targeting security officials<\/a>, in what reflects Pyongyang\u2019s effort to legitimize its growing battlefield role alongside Russian forces.<\/p>\n

A Daily NK source in Pyongyang<\/a> reported on Friday that on May 12, the Ministry of Social Security \u2014 one of North Korea\u2019s two principal internal security agencies, responsible for police<\/a> and public order \u2014 held simultaneous ideological lecture sessions at its headquarters and at provincial security bureaus across the country. The sessions commemorated the participation of a combined Korean People\u2019s Army<\/a> (KPA) army, navy, and air force contingent in Russia\u2019s 81st Victory Day parade on May 9 in Moscow\u2019s Red Square.<\/p>\n

The lectures<\/a> were conducted in video<\/a> format and centered on ideological themes urging officials to be prepared to die on the battlefield in service to Kim Jong Un<\/a>.<\/p>\n

According to the source, the lecturer declared that \u201cunder the wise leadership of the great comrade Kim Jong Un, our military<\/a> demonstrated its might as a powerful force at the heart of Russia<\/a>,\u201d describing the parade as \u201can unprecedented victory for the republic\u2019s international standing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lecturer also promoted the overseas reception of the KPA\u2019s performance<\/a>, claiming that the many national delegations and media<\/a> outlets gathered in Moscow \u201ccould not conceal their admiration\u201d at the disciplined march of North Korean troops<\/a>. The emphasis on international prestige appeared designed to foster internal cohesion.<\/p>\n

Notably, the lecturer singled out the moment when Colonel Choe Yong Hun, who led the KPA parade contingent, received a direct expression of gratitude from Russian President Vladimir Putin. This was framed as \u201cthe highest honor for a soldier<\/a> of the Kim Jong Un era.\u201d<\/p>\n

Soldiers must be ready to die wherever Kim Jong Un orders<\/p>\n

The most striking element of the sessions was the explicit message delivered to officials: \u201cA soldier of the Kim Jong Un era must be prepared to lay down their bones wherever the Supreme Commander orders \u2014 even if that place is a battlefield engulfed in flames.\u201d<\/p>\n

The source said the parade was presented \u201cas a political event demonstrating that the Korean People\u2019s Army is ready to play a leading role on the battlefield,\u201d with the phrase \u201cdefending the war<\/a> front\u201d repeated throughout. Given the deepening military cooperation with Russia, the source suggested the language may have been intended to prepare officials psychologically for the possibility of further KPA deployments.<\/p>\n

The atmosphere in the lecture hall was described as tense and silent throughout. Security officials sat rigidly, continuously writing down phrases in their notebooks.<\/p>\n

After the session ended, some officials were overheard expressing conflicted reactions. While they said their hearts swelled seeing North Korean troops march across Red Square, they added that repeated references to dying on the battlefield \u201cmade their skin crawl\u201d as they thought of soldiers<\/a> who had already been killed in action.<\/p>\n

Read in Korean<\/a><\/p>\n

Reporting from inside North Korea<\/p>\n

\n Daily NK operates networks of sources inside North Korea who document events in real-time and transmit information<\/a> through secure channels. Unlike reporting based on state media, satellite<\/a> imagery, or defector<\/a> accounts from years past, our journalism comes directly from people currently living under the regime. We verify reports through multiple independent sources and cross-reference details before publication.\n <\/p>\n

\n Our sources remain anonymous because contact with foreign media is treated as a capital<\/a> offense in North Korea \u2014 discovery means imprisonment or execution. This network-based approach allows Daily NK to report<\/a> on developments other outlets cannot access: market<\/a> trends, policy implementation, public sentiment, and daily realities that never appear in official narratives.\n <\/p>\n

\n Maintaining these secure communication channels and protecting source identities requires specialized protocols and constant vigilance. Daily NK serves as a bridge<\/a> between North Koreans and the outside world, documenting what\u2019s happening inside one of the world\u2019s most closed societies.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Workers’ Party of Korea’s official newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported May 10, 2026, that a combined Korean People’s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37637,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[23147,448,141,31,344,7032,453,137,7452],"class_list":["post-37636","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-korea","tag-deployment","tag-ideology","tag-kim-jong-un","tag-korea","tag-military","tag-ministry-of-social-security","tag-propaganda","tag-russia","tag-victory-day"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37636","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37636"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37636\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37636"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37636"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/korea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37636"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}