North Korea has announced plans to send 6,000 soldiers to aid in the reconstruction of the southwest Kursk region, according to Russian state news agency Tass.
The move was announced by Sergei Shoigu, secretary of the Security Council. He said 5,000 construction workers would rebuild infrastructure and 1,000 combat engineers would clear mines.
Shoigu said: “This is fraternal assistance from the Korean people and leader Kim Jong Un to our country.”
Thousands of North Korean labourers have already been sent west to alleviate labour shortages on Russia’s construction sites.
According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russian data shows that 13,221 North Koreans entered the country in 2024, up to 12 times the number recorded in 2023.
Companies in Russia, including military industrial enterprises, compete with the army for recruits against the backdrop of high casualty rates in the war and a declining population
The ISW said if North Korean workers in Russia were earning money for themselves or their state, Russia was violating UN Security Council Resolution 2397, which prohibited North Korea from sending its citizens abroad for work.
It added that Russia might try getting around that by issuing student visas, noting reports of record-breaking numbers of North Koreans entering Russia with them.
Moscow and Pyongyang are planning on creating war memorials for the Korean soldiers who died in the Kursk Region.
Shoigu is currently visiting Pyongyang, his third North Korean trip in three months. Flights between the two countries are due to be reinstated.
Further planned visits to North Korea this year include a commemoration of Korea’s National Liberation Day.
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