The scene reads like fiction. On April 27, Kim Jong Un inaugurated in Pyongyang the Memorial and Museum of Military Exploits, dedicated to North Korean soldiers who fought alongside the Russian army in Russia’s Kursk region. The centerpiece: a German Leopard 2A4 tank captured in Ukraine, gifted by Moscow, displayed as a trophy of war.

And it does not stand alone. Alongside the German Leopard, the museum displays American M1A1 Abrams tanks, German Marder armored vehicles, French AMX-10RC and VAB, M113 carriers, Turkish Kirpi armored vehicles and British Husky. All lined up as relics of Western armament that ended up in the hands of the opposing bloc. A brutal image of how the war map shifted.

The ceremony had heavyweight guests. Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov and State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin traveled to Pyongyang to represent Moscow. Putin sent a message read at the event: the museum is “a symbol of friendship and solidarity” between Russia and North Korea. The foundation stone was laid in October 2025.

North Korean involvement is already massive. According to South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, as of February 2026 around 10,000 North Korean combat troops and 1,000 military engineers had been deployed in Kursk. It is the first time Pyongyang openly intervenes in a European conflict, sealing an alliance with Moscow that has been growing for years.