North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un inspected the progress of constructing a memorial honoring soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the Russia-Ukraine war, accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju-ae. Analysts view this as a symbolic move to reaffirm close ties with Russia and to show displeasure over the meeting between South Korean and Chinese leaders in Beijing.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim Jong Un, along with his wife Ri Sol-ju and daughter Kim Ju-ae, visited the construction site of a museum and memorial honoring North Korean soldiers who died on foreign missions, particularly in the Russia-Ukraine war battlefield.
During the visit, Kim Jong Un described the project as a "grand monument of the era," symbolizing the bravery of Korea's children and expressing the Workers' Party's eternal gratitude to the fallen soldiers. He added that it also serves as an ideological foundation to demonstrate North Korea's immortality to the world.
The memorial is located in the Hwasong district, also known as Pyongyang's "New City," and consists of a military cemetery, museum building, and commemorative monument. The foundation stone was laid on 23 Oct 2025 GMT+7.
Analysts note that this inspection took place on the same day as the summit between South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, signaling clear concerns about China-South Korea relations. North Korea may worry that closer ties between South Korea and China could undermine its influence within the trilateral alliance of China, Russia, and North Korea.
While relations with China are a legacy from previous generations, North Korea's close ties with Russia—including sending troops to assist in the war—are a personal achievement of Kim Jong Un. Moreover, bringing Kim Ju-ae to this key security event is seen as an effort to project the North Korea-Russia alliance as a political heritage to pass on to the next generation.
In addition to visiting the memorial, North Korea launched a "Hwasong-11 MA" hypersonic missile on Sunday, viewed as a show of military strength intended to intimidate regarding the situation in Venezuela and to express dissatisfaction with the Beijing summit.
Oh Gyeong-seop, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU), commented that this stance aims to build supreme loyalty to the leader ahead of the 9th Workers' Party Congress. Kim Ju-ae's presence further reinforces Kim Jong Un's image as the "Father of the Nation" laying the foundation for the future generation.