Daily NK

6 days ago | dailynk.com | Lee Sang Yong

North Korea recently broke its silence and acknowledged deploying troops to Russia, despite previously maintaining silence amid reports from Ukraine and South Korea. This unexpected shift raises several important questions about the regime’s strategy. Official Procedures and State LegitimacyRather than coming directly from Kim Jong Un, the announcement emerged as a written statement from the Central Military Commission.

1 week ago | dailynk.com | Lee Sang Yong |Hwang Hyun-uk

“I cut myself trimming frozen pollack. I was bleeding badly and it hurt a lot, but they just put a band-aid on it and I went back to work.”A North Korean worker at a seafood processing plant in Liaoning province, China, expressed her frustration when asked about working conditions. According to her, workers must pay for most medical treatment, so when they’re seriously injured, they quickly patch up their wounds and continue working.

1 month ago | dailynk.com | Lee Sang Yong |Hwang Hyun-uk

North Korea’s cyber capabilities have evolved dramatically in recent years, progressing beyond simple hacking to encompass public opinion manipulation, military technology theft, and cryptocurrency mining. The country increasingly deploys IT workers in sophisticated “asymmetric operations” that face few geographic or temporal constraints and are difficult to trace. The regime recently established the “227 Research Center” under the Reconnaissance General Bureau of the Korean People’s Army.

1 month ago | dailynk.com | Lee Sang Yong |Lee Sang-yong

North Korea began selecting workers and technicians in early March for reconstruction projects in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, including the Donbas region. These labor assignments, already agreed upon with Russia, appear designed to earn foreign currency while strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries. A source in North Korea told Daily NK recently that the country is reviewing plans to send groups of 1,000–2,000 workers for Ukrainian reconstruction projects.

2 months ago | dailynk.com | Lee Sang Yong |Lee Sang-yong

As the Trump administration pushes to end Russia’s war against Ukraine, North Korean officials are developing plans to maintain a military alliance with Russia even after the conflict concludes. A North Korean source told Daily NK recently that Pyongyang’s position is that its military strategy isn’t influenced by specific events. This stance suggests that North Korea fundamentally intends to continue developing its military alliance with Russia.