North Korea and Russia deepen economic ties amid conflict
North Korean state media reported on Thursday that representatives of the North Korean and Russian governments signed a protocol to expand economic cooperation. This is another indication of the strengthening relations between the regimes.
The North Korean agency KCNA did not provide detailed information about the agreements signed on Wednesday in Pyongyang by North Korea's Minister of External Economic Relations, Jun Jong Ho, and Russia's Minister of Natural Resources, Alexander Kozlov.
Russian media reports that the countries have agreed to increase the number of direct charter flights from the eastern regions and larger Russian cities.
Currently, only one air route is serviced between Vladivostok and Pyongyang. From January to September, 5,000 tourists travelled between the two countries, over 70 per cent of them by plane.
Pyongyang and Moscow have intensified diplomatic and economic contacts over the past few years, particularly after Russia initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In June, President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea, where he and Kim Jong Un signed a mutual defence pact.
10,000 Korean soldiers in Putin's war
According to South Korean and U.S. intelligence services, over 10,000 North Korean soldiers deployed in Russia are participating in fights against Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region, near the border with Ukraine. Pyongyang also supplies Moscow with conventional weapons, including missiles and artillery systems.
Despite seemingly good economic indicators, the Russian war economy faces significant challenges. According to analyses by The Economist magazine, high military expenditures and rising interest rates could lead to a collapse as early as the second half of 2025.
