16 July, 2023: Kim Jong Un joins hands with Vladimir Putin. Read to know more.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has promised to "hold hands" with Russian President Vladimir Putin and strengthen their alliance on their common goal of creating a powerful nation.
In a greeting to Putin on Russia's National Day, Kim made the commitment, justifying Putin's choice to attack Ukraine and expressing his "full support and solidarity."
A bit of a background on Russia's National Day:
On 12th of June in 1991, the Russian parliament formally declared Russian sovereignty from the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was officially dissolved in December that year and the June 12 holiday was established in 1992.
In picture: Fireworks during celebrations in Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, 2015.
Picture source: wikipedia
To promote June 12 as a patriotic holiday, Russia's first president Boris Yeltsin suggested renaming it to Russia Day in 1997
Many Russians refused to celebrate this holiday when it was introduced in 1994. For them it was the day when their leaders agreed to the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Kim demanded "closer strategic cooperation" with Moscow, "holding hands firmly with the Russian president, in compliance with the shared ambition of the two countries' peoples to fulfill the goal of constructing a powerful country,"
After Moscow invaded Ukraine last year, North Korea attempted to develop deeper ties with the Kremlin and supported it, criticizing the "hegemonic policy" and "high-handedness" of the United States and the West.
"Justice is sure to win and the Russian people will continue to add glory to the history of victory," Mr. Kim said.
