Russia deploys up to 25,000 North Korean workers in drone production for Ukraine war

A US-led sanctions monitoring team reports that Russia is using up to 25,000 North Korean workers in its drone industry, including at Alabuga in Tatarstan, to assemble UAVs for use against Ukraine. This deepens military cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang, providing North Korea with revenue to fund its weapons programs while circumventing international sanctions. The scale of the workforce and the extent of sanctions evasion remain uncertain, but the report signals a significant expansion of bilateral military-industrial ties.