North Korean Leader Positions Youth as Vanguard of State Objectives

KCNA/Reuters

North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un.

North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un met delegates attending the ruling party’s youth league congress in Pyongyang, state media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Sunday, as authorities once again portrayed young people as central to both domestic mobilisation efforts and the country’s military role in Russia’s war against Ukraine.

The Eleventh Congress of the Socialist Patriotic Youth League—a political gathering held every five years and aimed at mobilising citizens aged approximately 14 to 30—concluded last week with mass rallies, torchlight parades and a gala in the capital.

Kim on Saturday told delegates that youth was the "vanguard" in advancing state goals, calling the league a key force for carrying out party decisions. He urged tighter organisation and ideological discipline and posed for a group photograph with participants, KCNA said.

In a letter published on Friday, the ruling Workers' Party explicitly linked youth loyalty to Pyongyang's involvement in the Ukraine war, telling the congress ‌that ⁠young soldiers sent on overseas operations had "become bombs and flames" in defending the country's honour.

North Korea is estimated to have deployed approximately 14,000 troops to support Russian forces in the Kursk region, according to officials from South Korea, Ukraine and Western countries. These sources report that more than 6,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed.

Last month, Kim unveiled a new memorial in Pyongyang to honour those who lost their lives during the deployments.

The heightened emphasis on controlling youth comes amid an intensified crackdown on foreign cultural influence. Exposure to South Korean music, films and slang is now treated as a serious political offence, as Kim positions youth policy as a cornerstone of social stability.

He has also made increasingly frequent public appearances alongside his young daughter, believed to be named Ju Ae, at major state events.

Source: Reuters



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