Kim Jong-un and his wife look “like a pair of tubby elves from Lord of the Rings” while riding a symbolic animal, according to a South Korean newspaper.

The Chosun Ilbo made the comment in a 2023 article titled N.Korea ‘Sold Arms to Russia in Return for White Horses’, which levelled claims against the hermit kingdom that it had provided arms to Russia in exchange for “luxury goods’.

The paper claimed that among the alleged items was a “trainload of white horses”, linking to a 2024 article published in The Times today that indicated that Kim Jong-un had recently received 24 horses from Russia.

The South Korean article’s author, Kim Eun-joong, wrote: “White horses carry powerful symbolism in North Korea, and Kim and his wife Ri Sol-ju have posed riding them through a winter landscape on Mt. Baekdu looking like a pair of tubby Elves from ‘Lord of the Rings’.”

The latest consignment of horses included 19 stallions and five mares of a breed known as Orlov Trotters, which is Kim’s best-loved breed and the animal of choice for his propaganda videos.

The videos in question include old footage of Kim riding with his late father, Kim Jong-il, and with his wife, Ri Sol-ju, and sister, Kim Yo-jong, on Mt Paektu.

The white horse serves as a symbol for the Kim family, with North Korea saying that Kim Il Sung, the nation’s founder and Kim’s grandfather, rode one while battling Japanese colonial rulers.

In 2019, North Korean state media released photos of Kim on a white horse wearing a long light-brown coat on the snow-covered peaks of the sacred mountain.

Mt Paektu’s significance to the Kim dynasty extends beyond the mythological, however, as Kim Il Sung allegedly had an anti-Japan guerrilla base on the mountain, according to North Korean documents.

In addition, Kim Jong Il (Kim Jong-un’s father) has an official biography that states that he was born on the mountain while a double rainbow appeared in the skies.

The Chosun Ilbo reported in 2023 that the horses are believed to serve as gifts for family members and officials and may have been used in a military parade.

The paper also wrote that Kim’s daughter, Ju-ae, was spotted alongside the dictator riding the Orlov Trotters during a parade celebrating the army’s 75th anniversary.

It also wouldn’t be the first time that North Korea and Russia had exchanged animals, as The Times reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin sent Kim 447 goats in August.

It followed the signing of a “comprehensive partnership agreement” in June pledging military cooperation, with Kim sending Pungsan dogs to the Russian autocrat later that month, state media KCNA said.