His first posting was commander of a reconnaissance platoon of a separate motor rifle regiment fighting near Shindand during the Soviet–Afghan War.

Subsequently, Kim graduated from the Frunze Military Academy with honors, and served in East Germany for a year before the Russian withdrawal.

Kim, by then a lieutenant colonel, was then sent to Tajikistan and served as deputy chief of the operational department of the staff of a combined arms army during the Tajikistani Civil War.

[5][6] In April 2019, Kim returned to an operational post as deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces for peacekeeping missions,[7] and was promoted to colonel general on 10 December 2020.

The other two deputy commanders were Sergey Surovikin and Oleg Salyukov, with Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov appointed commander-in-chief.