North Korea calls for troops’ greater loyalty to Kim

By HYUNG-JIN KIM
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has urged its 1.2 million troops to unite behind leader Kim Jong Un and defend him with their lives, as the country marked the 10th anniversary of Kim’s ascension to supreme commander of the military. Thursday’s anniversary comes as North Korea holds a key multi-day political conference in which officials are expected to discuss how to address difficulties brought by the pandemic and long-dormant diplomacy with the United States. In a lengthy editorial, the North’s main Rodong Sinmun newspaper said the country’s military commanders and soldiers must become an “impregnable fortress and bulletproof walls in devotedly defending (Kim) with their lives.”