1 of 2 | People look at pictures of North Koreans missing in North Korea during an exhibition held as part of the 2025 Seoul World Convention on North Korean Human Rights in front of Seoul City Hall in Seoul, South Korea, 24 October 2025. The convention, held under the theme ‘Let Them Be Free!’, took place from 22 to 24 October. Photo by JEON HEON-KYUN / EPA
March 25 (Asia Today) — Russia funneled about 50 billion won ($33.4 million) to North Korean workers under the guise of scholarships, according to a report released Tuesday by a South Korean human rights group.
The Citizens’ Coalition for North Korean Human Rights said the arrangement allowed Pyongyang and Russian entities to evade U.N. Security Council Resolution 2397, which bars the hiring of new North Korean workers abroad and requires the repatriation of those already deployed.
According to the report, a Russian university identified as Sozheistvie received 2.7 billion rubles ($33.34million) in support from 76 Russian companies between October 2023 and June 2025 and distributed the funds to North Korean laborers who were presented as foreign students.
The group said the workers were formally registered in language, technical or vocational training programs, but were in practice assigned to full-time construction, logging and industrial jobs.
Based on an analysis of the university’s financial records, the report said individual payments ranged from about 330,000 won to 4.7 million won, or about $220 to $3,135, per worker – far above the average scholarship paid by Russian higher education institutions, which it said was about 70,000 won, or roughly $47, per student in 2024. (Xe)
The report said the wages were ultimately confiscated by North Korean authorities and routed into accounts linked to institutions involved in weapons development and regime maintenance, including agencies associated with uranium mining, nuclear and ballistic missile programs, arms exports and internal security.
It also said North Korean military-linked companies and firms tied to Office 39, a key regime finance network, remain active in Russia despite international sanctions.
The findings were based on in-depth interviews with eight North Korean defectors, including former workers in Russia, witnesses and former managers with direct knowledge of the labor system, the group said.
— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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