North Korea held a laying ceremony for a monument to its fallen soldiers who fought alongside Russian troops in Russia’s war with Ukraine, the state KCNA news agency said on Friday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed a “historic peak” in ties with Russia at a ceremony at the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats in the capital Pyongyang.
“Pyongyang will always stand by Moscow. Our friendship and unity will always remain,” Kim said.
Kim said the museum is “a sacred sanctuary dedicated to the immortality of true patriots.”
Kim said the memorial would feature statues dedicated to North Korean soldiers fighting in Russia, as well as photographs and artifacts depicting the war.
There is a mutual defense agreement between Russia and North Korea
Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin have a mutual defense agreement, which North Korea ratified in November 2024.
The treaty obliges both countries to provide immediate military assistance to each other using “all means” necessary if faced with “aggression”.
North Korea acknowledged sending troops to Russia in April 2025, although rumors of North Korean troops in Ukraine had been circulating for months in advance.
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 personnel.
Since 2023, it has also sent billions of dollars worth of weapons such as artillery ammunition, rockets and missiles in exchange for economic and military technology assistance from Russia.
Increase in the number of North Korean troops in Russia
At least 2,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed in Russia’s Kursk region on the border with Ukraine, according to a September estimate by South Korea’s intelligence agency.
This is a significant increase in the number of deaths in a few months. In April, the spy agency estimated that about 600 North Korean soldiers had died fighting in Russia. A much larger number of people have been injured than this.
Russia’s ambassador to North Korea as well as other Russian embassy officials attended a groundbreaking ceremony, KCNA reported.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar