Full video from North Korean state television shows the ceremony for the return of some of the bodies of North Korean soldiers killed while fighting in Ukraine. The bodies arrived on a Russian cargo plane and represent only a small fraction, displayed with such pomp purely for state propaganda, while the thousands of other dead soldiers are being repatriated routinely by train.

From the initial force of 10,000 to 12,000 soldiers, it is estimated that around 40–50% have been killed or wounded in the war. South Korean intelligence sources report that a new contingent of up to 30,000 North Koreans is expected to be sent to Russia in the coming months.