Bizarre photos show Kim Jong Un lifting daughter Ju Ae and staff on a forklift

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was inspecting the construction of a memorial for North Korean troops recently, where he gave a lift to his daughter and staff members on a forklift. Images released by KCNA show Ju Ae and some officials standing on a forklift, several inches above the ground, while Kim Jong Un handled the steering wheel. It was a strange scene and an amusing picture as the North Korean leader drove the forklift. The memorial is being built for troops who died ​fighting overseas, KCNA reported. He was there with his daughter Ju Ae and some members of his entourage. Notably, Pyongyang has a mutual ​defence pact with Russia, as part of which North Korea sent around ⁠14,000 soldiers to join the Russian troops against Ukraine. According to South Korean, Ukrainian and Western sources, more ‍than 6,000 of ​them were killed.

Kim termed North Korean soldiers heroes

At the site, Kim called these soldiers "heroes who sacrificed ‍themselves ‍without hesitation". He added, "No in the world can overcome such an army that is absolutely loyal to the orders of the party". Russia and North Korea share close military and security relations and are countries that stand against the West. Pyongyang has stood with Moscow in its war against Ukraine and even sent its workers to help with other jobs since there is a lack of workforce due to the war. North Korea and Russia signed the Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2024.

At the memorial, Kim participated in tree-planting with his daughter Ju Ae. She wore a red muffler and can be seen shovelling earth with her father in the photos released by state media. Recently, a photo exhibition detailing North Korea's progress under Kim also opened in Pyongyang. Meanwhile, the country tested more ballistic missiles on Monday with Kim watching the first such test this year. South Korea and Japan reported that they detected two hypersonic missiles. Kim said these tests showed that DPRK's (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) nuclear forces were ready to take on the enemies.