North Korea's memorial for Russian expeditionary troops under construction is set to be completed next month.
According to a report by the Korean Central News Agency on the 17th, Kim Jong-un, chairman of the State Affairs Commission, inspected the construction site of the "overseas military operations combat feats memorial" the previous day and said, "To mark the first anniversary of the liberation of Kursk, the combat feats memorial will be completed."
The outlet reported that the memorial's construction progress has reached 93%. Considering that on Apr. 27 last year the Central Military Commission of the Labor Party declared in a statement sent to North Korean media that "the Kursk region liberation operation has ended in victory," the completion ceremony is expected to be held around the end of next month.
Kursk, a border area in southwestern Russia, was occupied by Ukrainian forces in Aug. 2024, but it is where North Korean troops made a decisive contribution to Russia's recapture operation.
According to the KCNA report, Kim Jong-un closely examined the memorial's interior, the heroes' cemetery, and the captured weapons exhibition area during this visit, assessing the status of finishing work.
On site, Kim Jong-un emphasized that "the combat feats memorial must serve as a composite, a collection, of architectural art and fine art creation." He urged that "the soldiers of the People's Army and the designers and creators mobilized for this noble undertaking, bearing the people's solemn reverence, should splendidly complete the combat feats memorial as an immortal, sacred hall."
Since attending the groundbreaking ceremony in October last year, Kim Jong-un has continued to oversee the construction site. In January, together with his daughter Ju-ae, his wife Ri Sol-ju, and his younger sister Kim Yo-jong, vice director of the Labor Party, he staged scenes of the ruling family directly engaging in veterans' affairs by personally planting trees on site.
By focusing on veterans' affairs for the expeditionary troops, North Korea is declaring at home and abroad the legitimacy of its participation in the Ukraine war and seeking to relieve the military's fatigue from the prolonged deployment.