Kim Jong-un, chairperson of North Korea's State Affairs Commission, personally visited the site where a statue to be installed at a memorial for Russian expeditionary troops is being made.
The Korean Central News Agency reported that the chairperson visited Mansudae Art Studio on the 25th and guided the work to create sculptures for the "Overseas Military Operations Combat Merit Memorial." Mansudae Art Studio is the agency in charge of producing North Korea's major statues and propaganda art.
The chairperson inspected the symbolic tower, the central group statue, the secondary theme group statues, and the exterior decorative relief panels, and said, "Monumental value and symbolism are guaranteed at the highest level."
The released photos showed bronze reliefs depicting battle scenes and statues of fully armed soldiers. The statues are two to three times the height of a person. The chairperson, wearing a leather jumper, toured the site and at one point pointed to a draft layout of the memorial's interior to issue instructions.
"The heroism of the victory generation has been sublimated into the army's popular heroism," the chairperson said, adding, "We must raise the artistic perfection so that anyone visiting the memorial can keep an eternal memory even in front of a single statue."
The chairperson also told Mansudae Art Studio, "I expect that the party, government, military, and people's gratitude and respect offered to true patriots will be embodied in excellent creations."
North Korea is pouring effort into veterans affairs for expeditionary troops to underscore the legitimacy of its participation in the Russia-Ukraine war and strengthen internal cohesion, while easing fatigue from the prolonged deployment and boosting military morale.
The chairperson showed particular interest in the project, including personally attending the groundbreaking for the expeditionary force memorial in Oct. last year. On the 6th of this month, the chairperson visited the construction site to take part in shoveling and tree planting, and family members including daughter Ju-ae, wife Ri Sol-ju, and younger sister Kim Yo-jong also appeared.
Park Jeong-chon, Labor Party secretaries Ri Il-hwan, Labor Party deputy department director Kim Yo-jong, and defense minister No Kwang-chol accompanied the visit to Mansudae Art Studio.