North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, hailed a “new history of friendship with Russia written in blood” as he presided over the opening of a memorial built for his troops killed fighting for Russia in its war against Ukraine. Moscow, in turn, pledged to sign a five-year plan for bilateral military cooperation.
Mr. Kim and a high-level Russian delegation that included Defense Minister Andrei R. Belousov and Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin attended the unveiling of the memorial complex in Pyongyang on Sunday, state media of both countries reported on Monday. Photos showed Mr. Kim embracing North Korean veterans of the war, as well as Russian delegates, during a ceremony held before a white granite building. He also inspected rows of tombstones for fallen soldiers on the lawn in front of the structure.
After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Mr. Kim provided desperately needed support, first sending large shipments of artillery rounds and missiles, then thousands of troops. South Korean intelligence officials believe at least hundreds of North Korean soldiers have been killed in the fighting.
Since last summer, North Korea has publicly lionized the fallen, with Mr. Kim lauding them as loyal heroes sacrificed in what he called a “sacred war” in Ukraine and against the U.S.-led global order. He has invited bereaved families to state banquets, presented them with new apartments in Pyongyang and honored returning troops with medals. Mr. Kim built the memorial complex as a symbol of his country’s newly forged military alliance with Russia — and as a testament to the assistance Pyongyang provided Moscow at a moment of need.
In remarks at the opening ceremony on Sunday, Mr. Kim vowed to sustain North Korean support for Russia’s war effort, framing it as the foundation for long-term cooperation with Moscow.
“We have inscribed in this memorial hall a new history of friendship with Russia written in blood, and a new history of justice won with blood,” he said.
In a letter to Mr. Kim, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said that the sacrifice of North Korean troops “will forever remain in the hearts of all Russian citizens,” North Korean state media reported.
In Pyongyang on Sunday, Mr. Kim and Mr. Belousov discussed placing “military cooperation on a sustainable, long-term basis.” The Russian defense chief said that both sides were expected to sign a military cooperation plan covering 2027 to 2031 later this year, according to the Russian defense ministry.
Mr. Kim’s decision to intervene in Ukraine was one of the most consequential strategic choices of his leadership — one that produced a dramatic reversal of fortune few had anticipated. When he came to Moscow’s aid, he was enduring one of the lowest points of his tenure. High-profile summit meetings with President Trump, aimed at winning sanctions relief, had collapsed in 2019. The Covid pandemic followed, further severing North Korea’s already isolated economy from the outside world.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine changed the calculus. North Korea’s arms exports surged, and Mr. Putin visited Pyongyang in 2024 to sign a mutual defense and cooperation treaty. Soon after, Mr. Kim began deploying thousands of troops to help Russia retake the Kursk region from Ukrainian forces.
South Korean intelligence officials and analysts say that Russia has reciprocated with deliveries of fuel, food and military technologies that will help modernize North Korea’s armed forces. The deployment has also raised Mr. Kim’s diplomatic profile: Last September, he was received as a guest of honor alongside Mr. Putin when the Chinese leader Xi Jinping hosted a military parade in Beijing.
Choe Sang-Hun is the lead reporter for The Times in Seoul, covering South and North Korea.
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