Kim Opens Museum, Cites Troop Deployments to Russia

North Korea has begun building the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats in Pyongyang to honor troops who fought alongside Russian forces in the war in Ukraine, and state media showed Kim Jong Un at the groundbreaking. Kim praised the deployments as a “historic peak” in ties with Moscow, embraced grieving families and vowed the countries’ “blood ties” would continue. South Korean and international estimates place North Korean deployments at about 10,000–15,000 troops with at least 600 reported dead and thousands wounded, with much of the fighting and North Korean support reportedly concentrated in Russia’s Kursk region. The museum is planned to include sculptures, photos, a memorial hall and cemetery, and Russia’s ambassador Aleksandr Matsegora attended the ceremony. The public commemoration follows a 2024 strategic partnership and mutual-defense pact between Moscow and Pyongyang and has intensified international concern over expanding military cooperation, including reported transfers of troops, drones and munitions.