All soldiers and their elders were told: Defend the leader with your lives

All soldiers and their elders were told: Defend the leader with your lives

The newspaper "Rodong Sinmun" stated that the North Korean army and its commanders must become "an invincible fortress and a steel wall dedicated to defending Kim with their lives," the AP reported.

The newspaper called for the creation of a more modern, more advanced army, which is there as a "reliable guardian of the state and the people".

A similar statement was recently issued in Pyongyang, urging people to gather behind Kim in difficult times.

Some experts say Kim is going through the most difficult moments of his ten-year rule because of the pandemic, United Nations sanctions and his own mismanagement, the AP adds.