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North Korean leader vows not to forget Chinese war dead on armistice anniversary

Published: 27 Jul. 2025, 12:49

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un lays a flower wreath in front of the Friendship Tower in Pyongyang on the occasion of the 72nd anniversary of the signing of the armistice ending the Korean War, in this photo published on July 27 by the Korean Central News Agency. [NEWS1]

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited the Friendship Tower in Pyongyang on the anniversary of the signing of an armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War, pledging not to forget the contributions of fallen Chinese soldiers, state media reported Sunday.

Kim laid a wreath before the tower the previous day, saying that North Korea "would never forget the militant feats and merits of the fallen fighters of the Chinese People's Volunteers," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

The armistice was signed on July 27, 1953, bringing the Korean War to a halt. Since 1996, North Korea has marked the date as Victory Day, claiming it won the Liberation War against U.S.-led aggression.

Erected in 1959 in Pyongyang, the Friendship Tower commemorates the contributions of Chinese soldiers who fought in the war and has since served as a symbol of North Korea-China friendship.

Kim has frequently paid tribute at the tower on past armistice anniversaries, using the occasion to highlight North Korea's relations with China. This year's report, however, made no mention of bilateral ties, a possible sign that relations have yet to fully recover.

On Saturday, Kim also visited the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum in Pyongyang, the KCNA said.

During the visit to the museum, Kim placed a flower basket before a statue of North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, claiming victory in the war and praising it as the "victory of the outstanding military ideology, Juche-oriented war methods and superb strategy and tactics" of the founder, referring to the North's ideology.

"Our state and its people would surely achieve the great cause of building a rich country with a strong army and become honorable victors in the anti-imperialist, anti-U.S. showdown," the KCNA quoted Kim as saying.

The North Korean leader also separately met with servicemen of a battery under the Korean People's Army's 4th Corps and held a photo session, describing the unit as "an example in implementing the Party's training-first policy."

Yonhap