Kim Jong-un wants to use ties with Russia to revive DPRK economy - FT

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un has decided to develop ties with the aggressor country Russia in order to revive his country's economy. Factories began to operate at higher capacity, and the Minister of Defense admitted that the economic situation in the DPRK has "significantly improved" thanks to Russian supplies of food, raw materials, and petroleum products.

This is stated in the article of the Financial Times. The journalists write that relations between Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and the DPRK leader have significantly strengthened since the outbreak of a full-scale war in Ukraine. Kim Jong-un can use this war to "achieve his own success."

As noted, some North Korean factories have started operating at increased capacity. According to experts, this is unlikely to bring great benefits to the country, but they suggest that the ambitions of the DPRK leader are determined by "specific indicators of success."

"The war in Ukraine has become a real success for North Korea. After several years of hardship for ordinary North Koreans during the coronavirus pandemic, Kim Jong-un seems intent on using some of the profits to raise living standards and expand his industrial base," said Peter Ward, a researcher at the Sejong Institute think tank in Seoul.

Today, the country's economy is largely dependent on coal mining, concrete production, and industrial plastics. It is kept afloat by food, fuel, and fertilizers from China.

Kim Jong-un wants to strengthen economic partnership with Russia and reduce dependence on China, said Benjamin Kaceff Silberstein, an expert on North Korea's economy at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, North Korea will receive at least a billion dollars from a new arms deal with Russia. This could revive the DPRK's economy, which has been undermined by sanctions, as the budget of this small country last year amounted to only $24.5 billion.

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