SEOUL, Jan. 6 (UPI) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected the construction site of a new memorial in Pyongyang dedicated to soldiers killed while fighting alongside Russian forces, state media reported Tuesday.
Kim toured the site of the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at the Overseas Military Operations on Monday, where he took part in a tree-planting ceremony and praised the fallen combatants for their loyalty and sacrifice, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
Kim said the troops’ deaths “would serve as the solid root and eternal cornerstone supporting the mightiness of the motherly DPRK,” KCNA reported.
The Democratic Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.
The North Korean leader reviewed images of the fallen soldiers with “humble reverence,” KCNA said, calling them “the eternal stars of the country.”
“Nobody in the world can match such an army as those who readily dedicated their lives to the dignity and fame of their motherland,” Kim said.
State media photographs released from the event showed Kim accompanied by his wife, Ri Sol Ju, and his daughter, Kim Ju Ae, who participated in the groundbreaking activities alongside her father.
Ju Ae has recently appeared with Kim at a series of high-profile events, including New Year celebrations and a symbolic visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun family mausoleum, further fueling speculation among analysts that she is being publicly groomed as a potential successor.
Kim’s site visit comes amid North Korea’s deepening military involvement with Russia. The museum project marks Pyongyang’s latest public acknowledgment of a significant contingent of North Korean troops dispatched under a strategic defense pact with Moscow.
North Korea has deployed an estimated 15,000 troops to support Russian forces in the Kursk region, according to South Korea’s National Intelligence Service. The spy agency said in September that around 2,000 of the dispatched soldiers have been killed.
In August, Kim held a ceremony honoring troops sent to Russia, presenting medals and unveiling portraits of “martyrs” killed in combat. During the event, he announced plans for the museum as well as a special commemorative street in Pyongyang to honor their sacrifice.
Leave a Reply