New Delhi: Russia is using thousands of North Koreans as workers in its drone manufacturing industry, including in facilities making unmanned aerial vehicles for use in the war against Ukraine, according to a report by the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT).
The report released on September 16 showed the number of North Koreans working in Russia’s drone industry reached up to 25,000. Some workers were reportedly hired at facilities in Alabuga, Tatarstan region, where drones are kept.
“In 2025, Russia completed construction of a vast housing complex at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to house foreign workers, including reportedly workers from the DPRK.136 In early 2025, a Russian arms dealer sought DPRK nationals for unspecified labour purposes in Russia,” the report said.
The UN Security Council (UNSC) made it unlawful in 2017 for any UN member state to allow North Koreans to earn income within their jurisdictions. Russia is a permanent member of the UNSC.
Each North Korean labourer in Russia generates an average estimated $7,500 in wages annually, according to the report. North Korean workers were sometimes disguised as students under the visa arrangements to avoid any international sanctions.
The report highlights the growing military cooperation between the two countries, which has expanded its ties in the supply of weapons and deployment of troops to include labour and industrial production.
The findings also show the increasing economic and military links between Moscow and Pyongyang, as both governments continue to face international sanctions.
As of late 2025, the report showed that between 20,000 and 70,000 North Korean labourers were working in China compared with 15,000 to 30,000 in Russia. But North Korean workers can earn up to five times more monthly than workers in China, making Russia an attractive destination for labour deployment.
According to the report, North Korean workers abroad, mainly those in the IT sector, created up to $800 million for Kim Jong-Un’s government last year. The revenue is believed to support the Asian country’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes, which are illegal under the UN sanctions.
The MSMT reports that North Korean officials exercise strict control over their workers’ movements and contact with outsiders to prevent fleeing. Workers who escape could face revenge against family members back in North Korea.
The North Korean government reportedly seized a massive portion of their earnings. The amount taken by the regime was higher than the workers’ actual income, the report said.
Launched in 2024, the MSMT is a mechanism established to monitor and report violations and evasions of UN sanctions on North Korea. The 11 monitoring countries include the US, South Korea, and Japan.
It was established after Russia rejected the extension of a UN panel’s mandate. The UN panel spent 15 years monitoring North Korea’s sanctions violations and nuclear weapons development.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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