By the close of the year Juche 98 (2009), in a bid to invade the northern half of Korea, the south Korean belligerent forces cranked up tension on the West Sea.
Kim Jong Un ensured that the sailors of the Korean People’s Army kept a watchful eye on enemy movements.
In a November skirmish they dealt a crushing blow to them. Petrified by the KPA sailors’ resolute response, the enemy beat a hasty retreat.
After being briefed on the results of the naval operation, Kim Jong Un asked the officers concerned if there were an sailors who had been wounded in the battle.
The officers replied that there were some.
Kim Jong Un said: I would go and see the wounded if I could afford time. You must do you best to save those in a critical condition, so that they can regain health and join the fight to take revenge on the enemy. This is my order.
Then he took immediate steps for sending the wounded to hospital and their emergency treatment; he had competent doctors dispatched promptly to the spot.
On December 24 he inquired about how medical treatment was going and said that nothing should be spared for the sailors who defied death in the naval engagement and the captain deserved the title of Hero.
Then he adopted measures to hold a ceremony for awarding commendation on the sailors before lunar New Year’s Day.
He would often say to the commanding officers of the KPA :
Officers should keep in mind that when they feel warm and full, their soldiers might be shivering in the cold or enduring hunger. The soldiers’ parents encouraged their beloved children to join the army, believing that officers including those in charge of political work would look after them, so you should take good care of them in their parents’ stead.
The officers were full convinced that to Kim Jong Un, the service personnel are the precious and they are all his revolutionary comrade-in-arms, and that their safety is his top concern rather than the victory or failure in a military operation.
He once said at a meeting of officers: I would pluck a star out of the heavens if it were for the sake of soldiers. If a war breaks out, I will fight alongside them on the front line. My philosophy and creed is that amid a shower of bullets and bombs I will share life and death with soldiers and devote my all for their sake.
