The United Nations has placed heavy sanctions on North Korea, this includes North Koreans working abroad. When North Koreans are sent to work abroad, they keep very little of the money earned for themselves, and instead the money is sent back to the regime. It’s then used on the country’s weapons program, instead of boosting the economy and improving quality of life for citizens.

It is well reported that North Korean workers in the DPRK are working with Russian raw materials to make Russian goods, including uniforms for the Russian military. Now Pyongyang Papers have more examples of Russian companies that are employing workers from North Korea, despite sanctions making this illegal! This means they dont even need to move materials across country borders to exploit workers.

Worries of Human rights violations as well as breaking sanctions

In April 2024 the Russian Minister of Education and Science and the North Korean Minister of Education met and it was announced that more North Korean students will be granted visas to “study” in Russia. It’s expected that although some of these may be genuine students, a number of these visas will be used to circumvent sanctions and send North Korean workers to Russia. We think that these workers will be sent to work in clothing factories and construction, known to have horrible working conditions. The New Yorker has reported shifts up to 20 hours long and workers sleeping in unfinished buildings on construction sites.

North Korean and Russian companies named and shamed

At Pyongyang Papers we have been made aware that DPRK entity, Korea Ponghwa Trading General Corporation is working with Russian company Druzhba Limited Liability Company (ООО Дружба) to send 300 workers to their clothing factories. In contravention of UNSCR 2375 “Forbids member states from authorizing new employment contracts for North Korean workers.”, We suspect that student visas will be used to cover up the fact that the workers are being sent illegally, a tactic commonly used to circumvent sanctions. Druzhba are registered in the city of Odintsovo , a suburb of Moscow and their main activity is listed as the production of workwear. The General Director of the company is Litvinov Vladimir Alekseevich (Литвинов Владимир Алексеевич).

Ponghwa General Corporation has previously been involved in sanctioned activity in Russia; The UN Panel of Experts report for 2022 states that a Moscow-based representative of the company facilitated contracts to send DPRK workers to Russian agricultural and construction jobs in 2020 and 2021. As well as being a blatant breach of sanctions, this ongoing illegal activity will be harming those sent from North Korea to Russia as workers too.

Multiple companies exploiting North Korean workers

We are also aware of another Russian entity named Bridge Group LLC who are hiring 500 workers from North Korea (under the guise of being students to avoid sanctions). This is most likely only a small number of the true number of DPRK people being sent to work abroad in Russia, as we believe other DPRK companies are looking to partner with Russian companies hiring more garment workers, as well as workers for the construction industry. We will be looking at further articles over the coming months on this very subject.

As well as going against sanctions, we know that the North Korean workers will most likely be treated terribly, with little to no freedom and rights when working in Russia. At Pyongyang Papers we are always looking to raise the profile of these companies profiting from illegal activities, and so if you have any more information about the companies mentioned in this article, please get in touch with us.

In the past, our team here at Pyongyang Papers have published multiple reports about the North Korean workers abroad; sent to places such as China and Russia to generate vital foreign revenue to keep the Pyongyang regime afloat and fund Kim Jong Un’s weapons program. This is in direct contravention of the UN Security Council resolutions. With help of close allies, the regime is brazenly continuing with the monetization of North Korean workforce through overseas work programs. How Russian firms like Rasonkontrans and Yav-Stroi Construction company exploited North Korean workers in the past is well documented . This time, our investigations have uncoverd some new plans between North Korean and Russian companies to exploit skilled labor force.

Company changes name and continues to break sanctions

It would appear that the Russian Based elements of DPRK Jihyang Associated Corporation is negotiating a decade long contract to dispatch hundreds of skilled North Korean laborers to Valdivostok on behalf of other DPRK-based companies, to work in construction and shipbuilding industries. The Jihyang Associated Corporation which, according to one Security Council Report, changed its name from Green Pine Associated Corporation in 2019, has a track record of evading UN sanctions and conducting business overseas . According to US Treasury, Jihyang Associated Corporation in the past has been responsible for approximately half of DPRK arms and related material exports, in particular maritime military equipment and vehicles. But this UN sanctioned, Reconnaissance General Bureau front is now possibley shifting some of its focus to exporting North Korean workers.

We have uncovered that one of the Russian companies that is negotiating with the Jihyang Associated Corporation is, Livadia Ship Repair and Shipbuilding Plant. The Vladivostok based company which is part of Dobroflot Group was previously reported to have expressed interest in recruiting skilled workers from countries like Bangladesh. However, the offer of cheap North Korean labor must be too lucrative for the Russian ship building firm to pass on. Livadia, a key player in Russian shipbuilding industries may also be under pressure to deliver ships and other maritime vessels to support the Russian war effort in the Ukraine.

The second North Korean Company involved in the negotiations is Songchongang Trading Corporation. The evidence suggests they are discussing providing skilled workers to Montazhno-Stroitelnoe Upravlenie-7 (MSU-7) , a Moscow based construction company that specializes in bridges and tunnels. It is unclear at this stage what specific skills the North Korean workers will bring to MSU-7 projects but online resources points to Songchonang having some expertise in electrical and mechanical engineering. Interestingly the MSU-7, has a sub division based in the Donetsk region. It is possible the scheme being drafted is a means of recruiting North Korean workers to help to rebuild war torn parts in the occupied Ukrainian territory. Is this the first step towards us seeing North Korean military directly getting involved in the war?

Rebuilding efforts after impact of war

UN Security council-imposed sanctions in 2017 prohibiting member countries from providing work authorizations for DPRK nationals and to repatriate all nationals earning income overseas by 22 Dec 2019, with aim to restrict the revenue streams for the regime. However, with the war with Ukraine in full flow and the country in a wartime economic footing, it seems the Russian companies are eager to exploit the cheap North Korean skilled workers. Early this year, there were news outlets reported the arrival of around 300 North Korean workers in Vladivostok. There are also reports of Russians and the Regime using North Korean workers for the rebuilding efforts in areas such as Donbas where the Russian armed forces has made significant gains.

The North Korean workers has a reputation for being hard working and obedient with regime appointed management teams policing the workers on behalf of the employers . Although they deal with any form of dissent strictly, Livadia and MSU-7 should take note of the reports of rioting among North Korean laborers in China earlier this year over unpaid wage disputes . There is only so far you can push an enslaved workforce before they are likely to push back!

Please get in contact with us at Pyongyang Papers if you can shed any light on these Russian companies and the DPRK workers being exploited there.

The North Korean weapons program continues to be Kim Jong Un’s main priority. The ordinary citizens of North Korea are the ones who ultimately suffer in Kim’s desire to develop a deadly arsenal. In February this year Kim stated that South Korea was the “primary enemy … and can be attacked and destroyed at any time.” The regime has spent the last decade ensuring that the weapons at their disposal have been modernized and enhanced, ensuring that prolonged peace on the Korean peninsula seems increasingly unlikely. Sophisticated weapons require thousands of components and with current sanctions are aimed at ensuring North Korea is unable to develop these weapons. Unfortunately, this is where companies such as Ardis Group of Companies can profit, providing they are willing to break those sanctions!

Ardis – A history of breaking sanctions

One company that is no stranger to working with, and is a key supplier of bearings and other items to North Korea is Ardis Bearings. One of the companies that sits within the Ardis Group of Companies LLC. Ardis Bearings were originally sanctioned by the United States Treasury in 2017 for supplying dual-use components to the Tangun Trading Company, also known as Korea Kuryonggang Trading Corporation, A North Korean company designated by the UN & US for its involvement in the DPRK nuclear and ballistic weapons program.

Igor Aleksandrovich Michurin (Мичурин Игорь Александрович), the General Director of Ardis Bearings, was also sanctioned at the time. This was followed up by an additional sanction in March 2022 against the Ardis Group of Companies LLC for transferring sensitive items to North Korea’s missile program. Igor and his companies are a key supplier of bearings plus other items to DPRK. Although not listed as the CEO, Igor has several companies at his disposal in his attempts the hide his illicit activities. Some of the companies include:

• Gatchinskiy Bearing LLC
• LLC PKF “Profpodshipnik”
• Belagromekhanizm LLC
• Trading House Ardis LLC
• Bearings on Lipetsk Street, Moscow

From our current investigations we believe that Igor uses his contacts and his various companies to act as the middleman in procuring goods and services for the DPRK. These goods will then be transported to North Korea using unofficial channels and well used smuggling routes. Igor earns a percentage in commission as part of the deal but the DPRK are desperate for the items he can source and supply, to progress their weapons programs, so are willing to pay inflated prices. Unfortunately, Pyongyang Papers does not have all the information surrounding Igor and the networks used to smuggle goods to North Korea. We welcome any additional information or details we can investigate through our ‘Contact Us’ page.

Bearings on Lipetsk Street, Moscow. November 2023

Additional activities

Igor and his group of companies have years of experience when dealing with North Korea. That experience has obviously led to other opportunities. A 2018 article from Reuters details how Igor created a construction company – Mistroy LLC to employ North Korean laborers. Pyongyang Papers can also reveal that in the past Igor also hosted a number of DPRK IT workers at what is now an obsolete company, Ardis Financial Construction Company.

Its clear that Igor and his group of companies are proficient at avoiding sanctions. And after Vladimir Putin’s recent trip to North Korea, the new defense pact may signal an era of Russia & its companies being even more willing to help the DPRK advance its nuclear and ballistic weapons. How China will react to a strengthened relationship between North Korea & Russia remains to be seen but as long as there is money to be made or mutual benefits gained without proper consequences, entities such as Ardis and countries such as Russia will continue to break international sanctions. We are still investigating Igor and his group of companies and welcome any additional information regarding his company’s activities with North Korea. If you have any additional information please get in touch via the ‘Contact Us’ page

Here at Pyongyang Papers, we have investigated multiple illicit oil trade deals so the following investigation will be no surprise to regular readers. The more strategic relationship between Moscow and Pyongyang has been powered by DPRK weapons sales to Russia, for use against Ukraine. South Korea estimate that North Korea has shipped 6700 containers of ammunition since September 2023. We do not believe the North Korean regime would do this without some form of payment and it appears that fuel and oil is likely part of Russia’s offer.

From previous deals of this nature, we know that the DPRK are proficient at using “middle men” to hide their trade deals but recent activity by Russia and North Korea appears to be more bold. After the recent Russian veto, the UN Panel of Experts is currently disbanded and the US have been quick to announce new sanctions will be imposed on Russia for transporting more than 165,000 barrels of refined petroleum to North Korea in March alone!

Reports of Russian oil heading to North Korea

The Russian supplies of oil to North Korea were first reported by the Financial Times and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in March and included satellite imagery of North Korean tankers docked in Russian ports. However, this is not the only oil deal between Russia and DPRK. Pyongyang Papers have been informed that a North Korean entity named Sinyang Corporation are working with a Russian representative on a deal to supply hundreds of thousands of tonnes of Russian diesel oil to North Korea. We believe that the first shipment was delivered in March.

Images of the North Korean tankers in Russian port, taken from Financial Times and RUSI investigation

Under UN sanctions imposed by the 1718 committee, countries are legally required to report sales of refined petroleum to the Security Council. However, with the committees Panel of Expert mandate now expired Russia and North Korea obviously believe trades of sanctioned cargo can be conducted directly with ease. We would be extremely surprised if Russia provides any honest reports of sales to the UN, even with the imagery above confirming North Korean activity at Russian ports!

Additional deals between the two countries

During our investigations, Pyongyang Papers also discovered another North Korean company looking to purchase diesel fuel from Russia. The Korea Sungnisan Trading Corporation was sanctioned back in 2022 for acting as a front company associated with the Ministry of Rocket Industry and continue to ignore sanctions imposed against them. The proposed deal involves using the already sanctioned Russian state transportation company, Sovcomflot, to deliver the diesel fuel into the North Korean port of Nampo. Sovcomflot were originally sanctioned in early 2022 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and were sanctioned again in February of this year. Recent reports from the CEO, Igor Tonkovidov suggest that sanctions are impacting the companies ability to trade. This may go some way to explaining why they are so keen to help facilitate trade with North Korea, especially if they think the shipments can go unpunished!

Sanctions may be impacting Russian companies but with North Korea’s desire for oil and help, they are able to find it all to easy to continue conducting sanctioned and often dangerous activity. The recent Panel of Experts Report contains a letter from 55 member states detailing a breach in the yearly 500,000 barrel cap of oil exports to North Korea before the middle of 2023 including imagery. The letter recommended that the committee should inform all member states to immediately cease any supply of petroleum products to the DPRK for the remainder of 2023. Of course, the evidence was disputed by Russia and China who both failed to endorse the proposal and continue to hamper efforts to limit North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.

Please get in touch with us if you have any information on the companies or trades mentioned in this article. Pyongyang Papers appreciates any information that could help with future investigations and articles.

The DPRK are well known for their dishonest, provocative and non-conforming nature. So its comes as no surprise that when Russia invaded Ukraine, a decision condemned by the world, Kim Jong Un publicly declared his support for Moscow.

Pyongyang Papers have been made aware of another sanctioned DPRK labor deal involving construction workers in Russia. This is not the first time we have investigated a deal of this nature – you can read our previous article here.

Perhaps surprisingly, Russia and North Korea have never had significant relationship. The DPRK is economically dependent on China, which currently accounts for over 90 percent of its total trade volume as well as most food and energy imports. Despite this economic dependence there is reportedly deep distrust between the two nations. China’s attempts to assert dominance over North Korea along with the North Korean regimes efforts to guard against Chinese influence have long generated tension between the two countries. Russia’s stance has always been to follow China’s lead, supporting the DPRK when they do, not supporting them when they don’t.

Pyongyang & Moscow

However, Russia needs help in the form of weapons. The EU have imposed unprecedented sanctions against Russia in response to the war of aggression against Ukraine. These sanctions include visa measures, individual sanctions and economic sanctions including huge restrictions on the imports and exports between the EU and Russia. Which is why Russia is seeking an allegiance with the DPRK. The DPRK welcome this allegiance with open arms as it provides many benefits. Not only will a weapons deal with Russia help boost the ever flailing economy … it will also further antagonize the fraught tensions with the western world. A great result for Kim Jong Un!

In August 2023, Kim made the promise in a letter to Vladimir Putin that relations will be ‘further developed into a long standing strategic relationship’. He also went on to state the two countries are ‘fully demonstrating their invincibility and might in their struggle against imperialists’. This letter was followed by the recent summit held in Russia and was attended by Kim. Washington have warned Pyongyang against sending weapons to Russia, as this would violate UN sanctions that prevent arms shipments to and from North Korea – but breaking sanctions comes naturally to North Korea as we have seen on countless previous occasions.

Construction workers to Russia?

Our current investigation involves the DPRK Korea Sungri Chonji Trading Corporation and the Russia based KSK-Stroy Limited Liability Company (ООО КСК СТРОЙ) for the supply of 200 North Korean construction workers to Vladivostok and Khabarovsk, Russia.

KSK-Stroy is a construction company that appears to have addresses all over Russia, with each location specializing in different construction types. The Khabarovsk KSK-Stroy’s activity appears to be mainly based on the construction of roads and highways and the Vladivostok company’s activity is engineering communications for water, sanitation and gas supply.

North Korean construction workers

Our sources have also found that the Russia firm ANO Digital Platform solicited a substantial number of North Korean laborers for construction projects in Moscow. Arseniy Shcheltsin is the CEO of ANO Digital Platform and this is not the first time he has been involved in something suspicious having previously been at the center of a scandal involving internet campaigning for the party in power. Pyongyang Papers wonders what use Shcheltsin could have for construction workers with his digital background?

Pyongyang Papers knows that nothing good can come from an alliance between two power hungry dictators such as Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin who prioritize their own political desires over the needs of their imprisoned citizens. We must unite to rid the world of their intolerable reign. Please contact Pyongyang Papers if you have any additional information on the companies listed in this article.

North Korean officials based overseas continue to break UN sanctions by brokering and facilitating deals, earning commision, so they can funnel money back to the regime and fund its nuclear weapons programme. UN Resolution 2270 states that all memeber states are to prohibit DPRK diplomats, government representatives (or DPRK nationals working in that capacity) from participating in joint ventures and any other business arrangements.

However, brokering deals is not a new money making scheme for the North Koreans- Pyongyang Papers have previously reported on illict deals facilitated by North Korean officials which you can read here. This time we are investigating a deal involving the brokering of oil between Russia and China.


DPRK acting as the middleman between two countries

Our sources have informed us that DPRK representatives based in Russia, are acting as middlemen to broker a deal for PRC-based company Yao He San Cai Petrifaction Limited for the purchase of Russian diesel fuel from Russian-based LLC RN-Komsomolsky Oil Refinery (RN-KNPZ). The deal is agreed for an initial time of 12 months with extensions. RN-KNPZ is located in Komsomolsk-On-Amur, Khabarovsk territory, which is near to the China-Russia border. Specializing in motor fuel and aviation kerosene, the plant was put into operation in 1942 under the integrated structure of Rosneft Oil Company and its crude distillation refinery capacity equals 46.9 million barrels per year.

LLC RN-Komsomolsk Refinery is the largest producer of oil and gas in the Samara region of Russia and the second largest Rosneft production unit after Yuganskneftegaz.


The North Koreans aren’t the only ones suffering the consequences of sanctions, LLC RN-Komsomolsky Oil Refinery has also been sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control amidst the Russian invasion on Ukraine.

Oil Imports


Chinese imports of Russian oil hit their highest level in May since the Ukraine invasion started in 2022. This could be down to the sanctions put on Russia and their import of oil is forcing them to sell for cheaper, or the fact that Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin pledged to boost trade to $200 billion in 2023 when they hailed their no limits partnership. As previously reported by Pyongyang Papers, we all know that China doesn’t shy away from sanction breaking activities. The PRC based company, also known as Yaohe Sancai Petrochemical (Shandong) Co. Ltd, has the address of Room 202, office building No. 819, Tuanjie Road, Qingdao area, China (Shandong) and appears to own a gas station on Yucai Road, Linyi City. With no obvious presence online, this company has a capital of $586 million and its president, Chen Dan, is linked to 7 other companies! We wonder if any of these other companies are breaking sanctions too?


Why use these middle men?

North Korean intermediaries, or middle men, have played a key role in the facilitation of oil deals between Russia and China to provide a bridge between the finances. DPRK representatives are busier than ever and with Russian oil being cheaper, it helps to compensate using them – so a win for all of those involved. Although the North Korean intermediaries would probably be losing all their income to the Regime back in their homeland funding the WMD programme! Using these middle men also means that these deals can go under the radar as there wouldn’t be any direct communication between them. Making it easier to get away with!
If you know any more about this deal or the companies involved, please do get in contact with Pyongyang Papers. We are always very appreciative of any information our followers can provide us.

North Korea citizens working overseas is banned under UN sanction resolution 2397 and all workers should have been repatriated by December 2019. Pyongyang Papers has investigated breaches of the resolution for several years and will continue to do with help from our sources. Recent reports indicate that thousands of workers still reside in China & Russia unsurprisingly, with many more waiting to travel as soon as the North Korean border reopens. For our latest investigation we looked into a number of companies involved in the exportation of DPRK labor.

Korea Namgang Trading General Corporation (NTC)

The Korea Namgang Trading General Corporation (NTC) is a sanctioned North Korean company that also uses the alias Ryongrim General Construction Corporation. NTC was sanctioned by the US for engaging in and facilitating the exportation of North Korean workers to generate revenue for the regime. Namgang are known to send their workers globally to countries like Russia, Nigeria and multiple countries in the Middle East. The March 2022 UN panel of Experts report detailed an entity called Korean Namgang Construction General Corporation (aka DPRK Ryongrim Overseas Construction Company) working with Chinese companies to send DPRK construction workers abroad. Pyongyang Papers wonders if NTC & the Korean Namgang Construction General Corporation are actually the same entity?

Pyongyang Papers has been informed that NTC also has links to a company in Russia called Stroytransgaz-Vostok (Стройтрансгаз-Восток) and are looking at a multi-million $ construction project to build a museum and theater. Stroytransgaz-Vostok is a Russian engineering construction company. The company is a subsidiary of the Stroytransgaz Group controlled by Gennedy Timchenko (Геннадий Тимченко) through his Volga group. Timchenko is known to be close friends with Vladimir Putin and has faced multiple sanctions from the US due to being a member of the Russian leadership inner circle. He has also had assets frozen due to the war on Ukraine. The Stroytransgaz Group has had previous contracts to build museums and theaters and has also been included in the contract to build a cultural center to build ties with Korea, China, and Japan.

Current construction of the cultural center in Vladivostok – Stroytransgaz

Other Russian companies employing North Korean workers

Stroytransgaz-Vostok isn’t the only company in Russia that North Korean workers are sent to – Russian companies that have completed contracts and have employed hundreds of DPRK workers in Russian clothing factories include:

  • Hoebul Company
  • Arovana
  • Russi (Chinamo)
  • Ratulango Clothing Company
  • Unistore Company
  • Energokontakt Company

We are still investigating the companies listed above and would be interested in any additional information available surrounding involvement with DPRK sanction breaking. These companies are located in Moscow, St Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod and Vladivostok.

The North Korean company involved in some of these deals is Korea Unha General Trading Corporation (조선은하무역총회사). This trading corporation is described as being the largest clothing processing trading company in North Korea. It has 110 factories and even owns its own trading ships! They are known to export clothing, raw materials for the textile and shoe industry, grain, gasoline, diesel oil & North Korean labor!

Countries like Russia and China continue to disobey sanctions and provide the North Korean regime with a constant flow of revenue which is used to fund the nuclear and ballistic weapons program. North Korea continues to launch and test its missiles at an alarming rate. Countries helping fund the regime need to be held accountable to help stop the regime from exploiting its own citizens. If you have any information about North Korean workers in Russian factories, or any of the companies named in this article, please do get in touch through the contact us page.

Pyongyang Papers has recently reported on DPRK illicit sanction breaking activity which involves North Korean officials brokering deals and netting $millions in commission, which is funneled back to the regime’s ballistic weapons money pot. Since our last article, we have been busy investigating more million $ commission-based dealings with Chong Sang-Hun and Chong Hyok.

China’s Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan

The latest deal we have been investigating involves thousands of tonnes of copper cathodes being delivered to China’s port in Ningbo, over a 12-month period. The port is located in Ningo and Zhoushan, on the coast of the East China sea and is the busiest port on the world in terms of cargo tonnage, however it has faced much disruption since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Ningbo-Zhoushan port
The port of Nigbo-Zhoushan

The copper cathodes deal is between a Indonesia-based trading company International Investment Trading (IIT) and China-based Liaoning Zhongwo Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (LZPC.) IIT have been commodity re-traders since 2019, specializing in the gold, copper, steel and oil products. Chief Exec Mr Micheal E Jones claims to ‘believe in transparency’, ‘are hungry to grow’ and are ‘proud to offer their clients and suppliers a fair deal at a reasonable price’. LZPC have been operating since 2021. Here at Pyongyang Papers we wonder if IIT’s clients are aware of their illicit involvement which in turn supports the DPRK’s nuclear program?

Coking Coal from Russia to China

Sang-Hun and Hyok have also facilitated another deal on behalf of China involving hundreds of thousands of tonnes of coke, originating from Russia. China, the world’ biggest coal consumer, is drastically increasing it’s domestic coal output. However, the quality o the fuel produced from its own mines is low and unsuitable. Metallurgical coal is key feed stock for steel making, meaning Chinese steel-makers are still dependent on overseas suppliers for coking coal.

After the US, Russia is the second in line with the World’s largest coal reserves. However, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many buyers in Europe along with Japan had already significantly reduced their dealings with Russia. Coupled with this, since August Russian coal imports have been subject to a ban in the European Union.

This has resulted in Russia significantly discounting their cargo – well below rates from other suppliers, like Indonesia and Mongolia.

Not to miss out on an offer, China have seized their opportunity. Reuters reported in May on record surges of coking coal imports from Russia to China, with a Beijing-based coal trader stating ‘Chinese and Indian traders are snapping up Russian cargoes as Western companies scale back, even though the embargo has not officially taken affect yet’.

According to Chinese customs data, Coking coal imports from Russia to China jumped to 2.5 million tonnes in September, from about 900,000 tonnes in the same month last year and 1.9 million tonnes in August.

DPRK earn Commission on China Cole Deal

The coke deal brokered by the North Korean officials is being delivered to China’s port in Longkou, with China Rozhao Le Song Trading Co., Ltd being the recipient. Longkou port is a artificial deep-water international seaport located in the province of Shandong, which imports and exports mainly consist of cargoes from the petrochemical industry.

Pyongyang Papers wonders whether the embargo will have any effect on Russia. Especially as China are more than happy to increase trading. Even if they are not involved in the deals directly, the DPRK will find any way possible to earn some quick money and break sanctions. If you are aware of any deals involving the DPRK, please get in touch with us through our ‘Contact Us’ page.

Since 2017, The United Nations has listed coal amongst the goods and services sanctioned against the DPRK. The Security Council decided the “DPRK shall not supply, sell or transfer, directly or indirectly from its territory any coal“. The resolutions also state “All states shall prohibit the procurement of such material from the DPRK”.

Despite sanctions the DPRK have continued to trade coal illicitly. This has been done through a network of illegal overseas business transactions and deceptive maritime ship-to-ship transfers with states who are willing to assist in sanction breaking activity.

Foreign currency

As reported previously, coal is North Korea’s major export and foreign currency earner. Most of North Korea’s coal is exported through China in a clear breach of UN sanctions. Estimates for DPRK coal reserves at around 4.5 billion tonnes worth in the region of $600 billion.

According to UN report in 2020, North Korea exported 3.7 million metric tons of coal between January & August 2019 despite sanctions, with estimated earnings of $370 million through these exports. However, exports did drop during the COVID-19 pandemic as North Korea closed its borders to slow the spread of the virus, having resumed again since. It has been reported that the DPRK exported several dozen shipments of illegal coal to Chinese waters and ports between September 2020 and October 2021, data and satellite imagery sourced to an unspecified UN member state indicated in the report.

According to a DailyNK report, coal mines in DPRK were ordered to engage in a week long campaign in February to generate foreign currency, scrambling coal to the port of Nampo for export. Although DPRK has an abundance of coal for burning, it is known that DPRK does not have any reserves of coking coal which is used mainly in iron ore smelting for making steel, the hermit state has a long history of importing this commodity. For a long time the DPRK has been trying to develop its own technology to produce coking coal from its own anthracite. if only it was that easy!

Coking Coal?

Although the DPRK has no coking coal, it does have substantial reserves of anthracite in the city of Anju and other areas of production. So where and how do the DPRK regime get their coking coal if they don’t have any? Pyongyang Papers has been investigating a Mongolian based company named Hanne Ulaan LLC who we believe to be involved.

It appears we aren’t the only ones to have looked into this company, according to the 2021 UN report, Choi Chon Gon (Mr. Choi) is a resident of the Russian federation and traveled to Mongolia in January 2019 for the purpose of setting up Hanne Ulaan LLC. Following the Mongolian investigations, it was noted that the company’s registration documentation was forwarded to an address in Moscow that matches that of the embassy of the DPRK. Subsequently, Hanne Ulaan LLC has been identified as a DPRK front company for the purpose of evading sanctions and was subject to frozen bank accounts by the Mongolian authorities.

Russian & Bulgarian involvement

Through Pyongyang Papers sources, we understand that Choi Chon Gon the general director of Mongolia-based Hanne Ulaan LLC worked with a Bulgarian based company named StaCom Inc. Ltd to purchase Russia-origin coking coal worth millions of dollars. Enabling the regime to produce steel, likely for their weapons program and the construction industry. StaCom Inc. Ltd is an exporter of coal, coke & petroleum products and have been trading since 1990. Stayko Georgiev Staykov is listed as the manager of StaCom Inc. Ltd with the company name appearing to change several times since 1990. Its clear StaCom place profit margins above the UN’s desire to stop the regimes ambitions for global instability. Even though the companies Bulgarian registry listing states they “trade in coal and coke, as well as any other activity with goods and services not prohibited by law.”

We believe that Mr. Choi is an associate of an individual named So Myong, a Hanne Ulaan, LLC representative located at the DPRK consulate in Vladivostok, Russia, involved with large deliveries of coking coal. There remains the question of how the commodity makes its way to DPRK, it is known that this is done through ship to ship transfers and we suspect that the port of Posyet may be used for loading the product before it makes its journey towards North Korea. Posyet port is conveniently located just north of the North Korea-Russia border on the east coast, making logistics fairly straightforward.

Posyet Port, Russia.

China

As Pyongyang Papers has previously mentioned, China remains one of the DPRK’s key allies in illicit trade deals. It has been reported that China is currently experiencing coal shortages due to a reduction in imports and decreased domestic production. The DPRK are all too willing to aid their energy-hungry neighbor and continue to export coal across the border.

When investigating Hanne Ulaan, LLC, Pyongyang Papers came across additional illicit activity in Mongolia. We have found that a likely DPRK front company named Uran Tech LLC, located in Mongolia, is to sell 50,000 metric tons of coal to the Dandong based Chinese trading corporation China Dandong Jinquan Import and Export Trading Co., Ltd. (丹东金泉进出口贸易有限公司). Dandong is the largest Chinese border city located on the western border of North Korea, facing Sinuiju, North Korea, with the two cities connected by the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge. It is hardly a surprise that this would be likely location for cooperation between DPRK and China and we have previously reported on the use of Dandong in many illicit DPRK-China trade deals. The Mongolia-based North Korean official Han Cho’ng-kyu is to share commission with a Chinese business partner Tian Mingxing on the deal which is worth nearly $3 million.

What it all burns down to?

Pyongyang Papers investigations once again show how the regime continue to prevail in their sanction breaking activity. There is no doubt that what has been highlighted above is only a small portion of the overall activity and with so much revenue generated, the regime will not be burning out any time soon. It remains a sad and desperate image of the regime as they continue to focus on fueling their weapons program rather than looking after the health & prosperity of their people. Especially as recent reports from the regime have confirmed a surge in potential COVID-19 cases. Pyongyang Papers will continue to highlight the illegal activity involving the DPRK. If you have any information related to this activity that could expose the DPRK, please do contact us.

Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union (the predecessor state to the Russian Federation) and North Korea date back to 1948, shortly after the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea was proclaimed. The relationship between the two countries continued even after the fall of the Soviet Union, with it gaining further importance when Vladimir Putin was elected President of Russia in 2000.

In the late 1940s, roughly 9,000 North Korean migrant workers were recruited by the Soviet government to work in state-owned fisheries on Sakhalin, with a further 25,000 workers following suit in the 1950s. A secret agreement between country rulers (Leonid Brezhnev and Kim Il Sung) saw a second wave in the 1960s, consisting mainly of criminals or political prisoners. The flow of workers from North Korea to Sakhalin continues to this day, as reported in our previous article.

By the mid-2000s, masses of North Koreans were still entering Russia on work visas to try to escape their poverty-stricken homeland. Often compared to slave labor by outsiders due to the relentless working hours and poor living conditions, on the contrary North Koreans view the chance to work in Russia as a lifeline for both themselves and their families.

Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin meet for the first time in 2019 in Vladivostock

Slave labor?

According to Russia’s labor ministry, North Koreans are paid on average $415 per month, 40% less than the average salary in Russia. With recent reports suggesting a sudden hike, up to 70% of these wages earned by the workers are reportedly seized as ‘loyalty payments’ by the regime, to help prop up the government and its falling economy. This leaves the workers with even less money than usual to cover their living costs and to help support their families back home. However, due to the prestige and limited opportunity for North Korean citizens to improve their quality of life in the DPRK, it is impossible to find a job in Russia without paying a bribe, meaning it is often the more affluent Pyongyang citizens who get the opportunities to work overseas, with the underprivileged remaining poor with no means to better their future.

According to Ministry of Labor statistics, more than 85% of North Korean migrants work in construction. The rest are involved in a range of jobs from garment wok and agriculture, to logging, catering and traditional medicine.

Sanction evasion

However, Kin Jong Un’s persistent refusal to stop its nuclear testing program resulted in enforced UN International sanctions in September 2017 ensuing an embargo on the use of North Korean labor.

Unsurprisingly, in recent years Moscow and Beijing have appealed unsuccessfully to the member states of the UN to overturn the sanctions, in the hope to reignite the steady flow of migrant workers into both countries. Russia admitted missing the repatriation deadline, and here at Pyongyang Papers we know that Moscow’s claims of complying with the embargo are not wholly true- instead North Koreans continue to enter Russia to work via a loophole.

As North Korean’s on worker’s visas leave Russia, more enter on tourism and education visas, which aren’t banned by sanctions. During the first 9 months of 2019, 12834 tourist visas and 7162 student visas were issued to North Koreans, each rising about six-fold and three-fold respectively from a year earlier, according to Russian government data. With experts concluding that many of these visitors are likely working in Russia.

Students or construction workers?

A recent Pyongyang Papers investigation has revealed that a Moscow-based construction company was planning on receiving at least 100 student trainees to work on Moscow build projects.

BS Installation, LLC was founded in 2017 as a construction company with many projects under its belt. Also, plans are being discussed on sending student trainees to work on Moscow build projects for practical training.

Pyongyang Papers believes that Pyongyang will select the first group of 100 student trainees to arrive in Russia to work on projects in and around the Moscow area, following agreement between Russia’s SitiStroyProyekt, LLC, (СитиСтройПроект) an architectural planning company whose activities consist of engineering design and construction project management based in St Petersburg, and DPRK General Construction Company “Pyongyang” (Pyongyang). The agreement is believed to last until mid-2023.

Pyongyang Papers understand that this is based on a 2007 agreement between Russia and North Korea for temporary labor of the citizens of one government in the territory of the other to improve North Korean students’ professional skills whilst ‘studying’ in Russia.

Turning a blind eye

It seems the DPRK continue to ignore the UN sanctions enforced against them. Possibly partly to fund an ambitious building project under Kim Jong Un’s direction. Kim Jong Un promised in January to alleviate the capital’s housing shortage with 50,000 new homes by the end of 2025, including 10,000 in 2021 at the ruling Korean Workers’ Party.

It appears Russia is trying to turn a blind eye to the North Korean workers that continue to work in their country, but what will become of the regimes ballistic missile plans should we all continue to ignore the DPRK’s actions. Pyongyang Papers pledge to continue to highlight both countries and companies enabling sanction violations- as always please contact us if you have any information.