Up to 25,000 North Koreans may be making military drones in Russia. Sanctions monitors say they enter on student visas.
As many as 25,000 North Korean citizens may be working in military drone production in Russia, including at the Alabuga special economic zone in Tatarstan, according to a report by the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT), which includes the United States, South Korea, Japan, and eight other countries.
A report from the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team suggests that up to 25,000 North Koreans may be employed in the production of military drones in Russia. These workers enter the country under a student visa program that allegedly allows them to bypass United Nations sanctions. The report indicates that North Korean workers can earn up to five times more in Russia than they could in neighboring China.
On average, each worker earns around $7,500 annually, with a significant portion of the income directed towards the North Korean government. As of late 2025, the number of North Koreans working in Russia is estimated at between 15,000 and 30,000, while the figure for China ranges from 20,000 to 70,000. The report states that North Koreans working abroad earned up to $800 million in 2025.
This money is reportedly used by North Korea to finance its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The story, written by a Meduza journalist and translated into English using an AI model, has been reviewed by a Meduza editor prior to publication.
Written by urgent.news from Meduza (English)'s reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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