North Korea had held a groundbreaking ceremony for a memorial for its soldiers killed fighting alongside Russian troops in Russia’s war with Ukraine, state KCNA news agency said on Friday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed what he called a “historic peak” in ties with Russia at the ceremony for the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats in the capital, Pyongyang.
“Pyongyang will always be with Moscow. Our friendship and unity will last forever,” Kim said.
Kim said the museum “is a sacred sanctuary dedicated to the immortality of true patriots.”
The memorial will feature sculptures dedicated to the North Korean soldiers who have fought in Russia, as well as photos and artwork portraying the combat, Kim said.
Russia and North Korea have a mutual defense pact
Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin have a mutual defense pact, which was ratified by North Korea in November 2024.
The treaty obliges both countries to provide immediate military assistance to each other using “all means” necessary if either faces “aggression.”
North Korea admitted in April 2025 to sending soldiers to Russia, although rumors of North Korean soldiers in Ukraine had swirled for months beforehand.
Ukraine estimated in April that North Korea had deployed more than 14,000 troops to the war, including 3,000 reinforcements, as well as military engineers and workers.
Since 2023, it has also dispatched billions of dollars worth of weapons such as artillery ammunition, rockets and missiles in return for economic and military technology assistance from Russia.
Mounting casualties among North Korean soldiers in Russia
At least 2,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed in Russia’s Kursk region on the border to Ukraine, according to September estimates by South Korea’s intelligence agency.
This is a considerable rise in the death toll in just a few months. In April, the spy agency estimated that some 600 North Korean soldiers had been killed fighting in Russia. A much higher number have been injured.
Russia’s ambassador to North Korea as well as other Russian embassy officials also attended a groundbreaking ceremony, KCNA reported.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar
