The Russian Orthodox Church held celebrations on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Kim Jong Il's visit to the church in honor of St. innocent of Irkutsk in Khabarovsk.
This is reported by the press service of the Diocese of Khabarovsk.
Guests of honor gathered at the "solemn rally" dedicated to "such a significant event for the Diocese of Khabarovsk": Metropolitan Artemy of Khabarovsk and the Amur Region, Deputy Consul General of the DPRK, head of the Khabarovsk Chancellery of the Consulate General of the DPRK in Vladivostok Kim Jae-Jung, president of the Association of Korean organizations of the Far East and Siberia Baik Koo Sen, clergy and North Korean families.
"On August 22, 2002, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il paid an official visit to the Russian Far East, particularly the city of Khabarovsk. One of the places he visited was the Church of St. innocent of Irkutsk. The beauty of the ancient Khabarovsk church delighted the North Korean leader, and the story of the priests of the Diocese of Khabarovsk about the Orthodox faith strengthened his opinion on the construction of an Orthodox Church in Pyongyang," the report says.
In his welcoming speech, Metropolitan Artemy noted that the Russian and North Korean peoples share the same moral platform: "We all look with love and friendship at the Korean people, who bear the difficult fate of fighting for their freedom and economic independence, despite the fact that they are surrounded by sanctions. Now we have experienced for ourselves what it is. I think our friendship should grow stronger in this regard."
We add that under Kim Jong Il, a cult of personality was established in North Korea, which had a semi-religious character. Portraits of Kim Jong Il decorated all public institutions, and any criticism of the leader was punished with a prison term in a concentration camp.
North Korean founder Kim Il Sung was known as a "great leader" during his lifetime and received the posthumous title of "eternal president". His son Kim Jong Il had the title of "Dear Leader". Kim Jong Il's successor - his son Kim Jong Un now holds the title of "great successor" and is the Supreme Commander of the DPRK armed forces.
Putin promised Kim Jong-Un to expand "comprehensive and constructive" bilateral relations with the DPRK. In July, Moscow raised the issue of sending workers from the DPRK to restore the Donbas.