17:59 26-04-2026

Putin Thanks Kim Jong Un for DPRK Role in Kursk

Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Putin thanked Kim Jong Un as Pyongyang opened a memorial to North Korean servicemen involved in the defense of the Kursk region.

The Kremlin press service said Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un after a memorial complex and museum opened in Pyongyang. The site is dedicated to North Korean servicemen who took part in the operation to defend the Kursk region.

In the message, Putin thanked Kim Jong Un and everyone involved in completing the large-scale project in time for the anniversary of the liberation of the Kursk land.

The Russian president also recalled the shared history between the two countries. He noted that Soviet troops and Korean fighters liberated Korea from Japanese colonial rule at the final stage of the Second World War, while in the 1950s the Soviet Union helped defend the independence of the DPRK against foreign intervention.

Putin said that in the present day, when part of the Kursk region came under enemy occupation, Pyongyang responded without hesitation and came to Moscow’s aid.

According to the Russian leader, North Korean servicemen who fought alongside Russian troops showed courage and self-sacrifice. Putin also expressed confidence that Russia and the DPRK will continue strengthening their comprehensive strategic partnership.