◆ Not Worried About Being Sent to the Front, But…
— Is there any talk of them being sent to the front lines in Ukraine?
"Everyone knows that many of our soldiers who went to Russia have died. These are workers — surely they won't be put into combat. But a lot of families are worried they might die in an accident or something. That's because recently a woman from Musan who had been dispatched to China died in an accident, and her body never came back. Only her clothes, toothbrush, and cosmetics were returned."
— Did you hear anything about their wages or conditions?
"I don't know how much they'll be paid. But I've heard that the families left behind in Korea will receive proper rations for their dependents."
This year, the North Korean government has also been actively dispatching female workers to China. North Korea's trade deficit with China, which accounts for more than 95 percent of its total trade, surged to $1.854 billion in 2025. Dispatching workers to both China and Russia to offset that deficit appears to be the Kim Jong-un regime's objective.
※ ASIAPRESS communicates with its reporting partners through Chinese cell phones smuggled into North Korea.
