North Korea honors troops who fought in Kursk (PHOTO)

Kim Jong-un has opened a new Pyongyang district honoring the troops who helped liberate Russian territory from Ukrainian forces

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has opened a new street in Pyongyang named in honor of the soldiers who fought alongside Russian forces to liberate Kursk Region from a Ukrainian incursion, state media in Pyongyang reported on Monday.

Kim personally cut the ribbon opening Saebyeol Street in the Hwasong area of the capital and handed over housing certificates to the families of fallen soldiers, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). ‘Saebyeol’ translates as ‘morning star’. 

The dedication of the street, which has around 50 apartment blocks housing 2,500 families, follows Kim’s recent inspection of the Memorial Museum of Combat Feats at Overseas Military Operations, also dedicated to troops killed in the Kursk operation. The complex features a memorial wall, bronze sculptures of soldiers in modern combat gear, and a structured burial ground.

Last year, North Korean troops, acting under the June 2024 Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, helped Russian forces repel a large-scale Ukrainian incursion in Kursk Region. While the number of troops has not been disclosed, the Russian authorities praised their role and said monuments to the fallen would be erected in Moscow and Kursk Region.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised Pyongyang’s contribution, saying the soldiers fought “courageously and heroically” and that Russia “will never forget the sacrifices.” 

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Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said the North Koreans “rendered significant assistance in routing the enemy grouping” that infiltrated the border region.

In late December, Kim told Putin that bilateral ties have been strengthened by “sharing blood” on the Ukraine frontline, and that “no one can break the relations” between the two countries, which are bound by the “shared will and power to defend the just aspirations of the times and to set history straight.”

Putin thanked North Korea for its assistance, adding that the deepening ties will “contribute to establishing a just multipolar world order.”