Vladimir Putin awards war medal to Kim Jong-un in recognition of dictator ‘preserving the memory of Soviet soldiers’
VLADIMIR Putin has awarded Kim Jong-un a top war medal to mark the 75th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany.
The gong was awarded to the dictator for his role in preserving the memory of Soviet soldiers who died in battle, revealed the Russian embassy in Pyongyang.
Putin's ambassador in the rogue state, Alexander Matsegora, presented the award to Kim's Foreign Minister Ri Son-gwon at the Mansudae Palace of Congress.
The 'Glorious Leader', who was rumored to have fallen ill or even died earlier this month, did not attend the top-level ceremony in the North Korean capital.
Photos of the meeting showed officials from both countries wearing face masks despite the fact the secretive state has so far not officially
Last year Putin invited Kim to visit Moscow on May 9 and attend the military parade marking the anniversary of the victory.
In 2015, the North Korean leader rejected a similar invitation to the 70th anniversary saying he needed to sort issues out in his homeland.
The ceremony came days after Kim ended mounting speculation over his health when North Korean media published photos of him smiling at a ribbon-cutting ceremony at a fertiliser plant.
His re-emergence came as a blow to the credibility of some high-profile defectors from the North who had speculated he was suffering from a grave illness or could even be dead.
One of the defectors, Thae Yong-ho, was North Korea's deputy ambassador to Britain, where he managed secret funds for the despot.
Thae fled to South Korea in 2016 and was one of a pair of defectors elected to parliament last month.
Reuters reported Thae said in a statement: "I am aware that one of the reasons why many of you voted for me as a lawmaker is with the expectations of an accurate analysis and projections on North Korean issues.
"I feel the blame and heavy responsibility.
Whatever the reasons [for his disappearance], I apologise to everyone."
Another prominent defector elected to parliament, Ji Seong-ho, had said in a media interview he was 99 per cent certain that Kim had died after cardiovascular surgery.
Daily NK, a Seoul-based news outlet with sources inside North Korea, reported in April that Kim was recovering from a heart op.
A downbeat Ji said in a statement: "I have pondered on myself for the past few days, and felt the weight of the position that I'm in.
"As a public figure, I will behave carefully going forward."
South Korea's ruling Democratic Party criticised the pair for carelessness and said their mistake could do more serious harm than just misinforming the public.
One party member urged them to be excluded from the intelligence and defence committees, while another said the defectors contributed little to South Korean society.
A group of activists lodged a complaint with prosecutors accusing Thae, Ji and the main opposition party chief of spreading fake information.
Ji's party acknowledged he had made "rash, careless" remarks but criticised the ruling party for undermining the two and "instigating hatred" towards them.