A Russian forestry delegation from the Ministry of Industry and Trade has visited North Korea. While the specific purpose of the visit remains undisclosed, it is expected that discussions will focus on the deployment of North Korean workers to Russia.
On Thursday, North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported that a Russian delegation led by Deputy Director Grigory Gusev arrived in Pyongyang on the previous day. The delegation is set to participate in the 28th meeting of the North Korea-Russia Intergovernmental Committee for Trade, Economic, and Scientific-Technical Cooperation in the forestry sector.
According to the newspaper, North Korean forestry officials and representatives from the Russian Embassy in North Korea greeted the delegation at Pyongyang International Airport.
The two nations have maintained this committee for approximately three decades, regularly holding meetings and signing protocols. However, North Korean media have never revealed the specific contents of these protocols.
This committee meeting is anticipated to address compensation issues for North Korean workers currently stationed at various economic sites in Russia, as well as to discuss potential additional deployments.
In February, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service disclosed that North Korea had sent thousands of workers to Russia in the previous year. This move appears to be in response to labor shortages in Russian industries, exacerbated by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
The overseas deployment of North Korean workers violates United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 2375, adopted in 2017, which prohibits the issuance of new work permits for North Korean nationals.
Nevertheless, Russia has been circumventing this restriction by issuing visas to North Korean workers under the guise of education and technical training.
According to the Russian Federal State Statistics Service, 13,221 North Korean citizens entered Russia last year, marking a twelve-fold increase compared to 2022. Of these, 7,887 individuals cited education as their primary reason for entry, making it the most common purpose declared.