North Korea said it completed a new housing district for families of soldiers killed while fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, as leader Kim Jong Un sought to underscore support for the war dead and the causes tied to their deployment.
State media photos released Monday showed Kim walking through the new street, Saeppyol Street, in Pyongyang and visiting homes of some of the families. The reports also showed Kim’s increasingly prominent daughter, believed to be named Kim Ju Ae, at the sites.
North Korea described the street as housing for the families of North Korean soldiers killed in the Russia-Ukraine war. The state media coverage said Kim pledged to repay the “young martyrs” who “sacrificed all to their motherland,” framing the project as part of an ongoing effort to honor the losses tied to the deployment.
In recent months, North Korea has intensified propaganda that glorifies troops deployed to fight in Russia’s war against Ukraine, including by establishing a memorial wall and building a museum, according to the Associated Press report. Analysts cited by AP said the messaging is aimed at strengthening internal unity and limiting potential public discontent about the deployment.
The deployment itself has expanded in recent months, with Kim sending thousands of troops and large quantities of military equipment, including artillery and missiles, to support Russia’s war on Ukraine. The AP report linked the assistance to the political alignment between Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin as each faces separate confrontations with Washington.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told lawmakers last week that it estimated about 6,000 North Korean troops have been killed or wounded during their deployment in the war, AP reported. The intelligence service did not provide a fatality breakdown, and it had previously estimated that roughly 600 had died.
Lawmakers who attended a closed-door briefing told AP that the intelligence agency believes North Korean forces are gaining modern combat experience and receiving Russian technical support that could improve weapon performance. The briefing did not provide more detail on the specific types of equipment or training involved.
The North Korean announcement came as the country prepares to open a major ruling party congress later this month. Kim is expected to lay out major domestic and foreign policy goals for the next five years and take additional steps to tighten control, AP reported.