North Korea opens new housing district for families of Ukraine war dead

North Korea unveils Saeppyol Street housing district for families of soldiers killed in Ukraine, honoring their sacrifice.

North Korea said Monday it completed a new housing district in Pyongyang for families of North Korean soldiers killed while fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, the latest effort by leader Kim Jong Un to honor the war dead.

State media photos showed Kim Jong Un walking through the new street — called Saeppyol Street — and visiting the homes of some of the families with his increasingly prominent daughter, believed to be named Kim Ju Ae, as he pledged to repay the “young martyrs” who “sacrificed all to their motherland.”

In recent months, North Korea has intensified propaganda glorifying troops deployed to fight in Russia's war against Ukraine, such as establishing a memorial wall and building a museum. Analysts see it as an effort to bolster internal unity and curb potential public discontent.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his daughter Kim Ju Ae attend the completion ceremony of a new housing district in Pyongyang for families of troops who died in overseas military operations | Photo Credit: via Reuters

Kim in recent months has sent thousands of troops and large quantities of military equipment, including artillery and missiles, to fuel Russian President Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine, as the leaders align in the face of their separate confrontations with Washington.

South Korea's National Intelligence Service told lawmakers last week it estimates that about 6,000 North Korean troops were killed or wounded during their deployment in the war, but did not provide a breakdown of fatalities. The agency said last year it believed roughly 600 had died.