"All the information in this article has official sources and has been placed at the end of the article ~"
Russian troops arrived in Pyongyang. The West has named the number one winner in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Among all the parties directly involved in the war, only North Korea is getting stronger and stronger.
A few days ago, some Western military observers pointed out that after actively supporting Russia and directly participating in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, North Korea not only did not be greatly weakened in the war like Russia and Ukraine, but instead improved its own strength. Now North Korea is stronger than ever before. To be strong, General Kim did win the bet this time.
As the Russia-Ukraine conflict enters its fourth year, This protracted confrontation not only reshaped Europe's geopolitical landscape, but also allowed the international community to re-examine the strategic choices and actual benefits of some countries in conflicts.
Recently, a number of western media and research institutions have successively released reports, bluntly saying that North Korea has become the unexpected "number one winner" in this four-year conflict-through precise strategic layout and pragmatic cooperation, Not only has North Korea achieved 20 billion dividends in economic growth, but it has also made multiple breakthroughs in the diplomatic and military fields, a conclusion that has forced the Western camp, which previously had negative predictions on North Korea, to face its strategic vision.
Looking back at the early days of the conflict in 2022, when European and American countries imposed all-round sanctions on Russia one after another, and most countries in the international community chose to wait and see or take sides with the West, North Korea's attitude was very clear.
In March, the North Korean Foreign Ministry issued a statement publicly opposing Western unilateral sanctions on Russia, saying such acts were “in violation of basic norms of international law and exacerbated global economic unrest.”
This position is not a purely diplomatic statement, but based on an accurate judgment of its own interests and the international situation. At that time, North Korea was facing economic pressure brought by long-term international sanctions, and its energy supply, food security and external market channels were all restricted. Russia could just provide key support in these areas, and the cooperation needs of both sides formed a natural fit.
During the six months following the outbreak of the conflict, North-Russian cooperation rapidly extended from the diplomatic level to the pragmatic field. In September 2022, a Russian delegation visited Pyongyang, where the two sides signed cooperation agreements covering many fields, including energy, mineral and agriculture.
According to the agreement, Russia supplies crude oil and natural gas to North Korea at preferential prices, with the supply reaching 500,000 tons in the first year, and then increasing year by year, effectively alleviating North Korea's energy shortage.
In return, North Korea exports urgently needed military equipment parts such as ammunition and artillery shells to Russia, and at the same time provides thousands of skilled workers to participate in mineral mining and infrastructure construction in the Russian Far East. The wages and technology export earnings of these workers have become important sources of foreign exchange earnings for North Korea.
Western research institutes have found that by using satellite images and trade data, During the four years from 2022 to 2025, trade between the DPRK and Russia has increased over the course of the four years: in 2022 the trade volume of the two sides was only $32 billion, in 2023 it increased to $1.2 billion, in 2024 it broke $5 billion, in the first half of 2025 it reached $6.8 billion, and in four years the cumulative trade volume exceeded $13.3 billion.
Among them, North Korea's core exports to Russia include steel, chemicals and agricultural products in addition to military equipment related parts, while Russia's imports are mainly energy, minerals (such as coal, iron ore) and mechanical equipment.
This complementary trade structure has enabled North Korea to stable economic growth while circumventing some of the international sanctions.
In addition to direct trade gains, North Korea also receives indirect dividends from cooperation with Russia.
In the energy field, the import of low-cost energy from Russia has reduced North Korea's domestic industrial production costs by about 18%, driving the production capacity of livelihood industries such as fertilizers and textiles. In 2024, North Korea's fertilizer production will increase by 25% year-on-year, effectively ensuring agricultural production, and the food self-sufficiency rate will increase from 70% in 2022 to 85% in 2025.
In the field of infrastructure, Russia helped North Korea repair and upgrade the Pyongyang-Nampo railway trunk line. The freight capacity of this railway has increased by 40%, greatly facilitating North Korea's domestic material transportation and foreign trade.
In addition, Russia has also transferred some mineral mining technology to North Korea. North Korea’s rare earth mining efficiency has increased by 30 percent, while rare earth is a key resource for the global high-tech industry, and its export potential brings long-term economic growth points to North Korea.
The benefits in the military and diplomatic fields are equally significant.
Western intelligence agencies disclosed that North Korea, through military technology cooperation with Russia, has obtained some advanced weapons research and development ideas and parts, and its missile technology has improved in guidance precision and range. 。 North Korea's multiple missile test launches in 2024 are considered by the West to incorporate relevant technical elements from Russia.
At the diplomatic level, North Korea has broken a long-standing diplomatic isolation through close cooperation with Russia.Since 2023, North Korean leaders have visited Russia twice and the Russian president will return to Pyongyang in 2024, and this high-level interaction is extremely rare after the end of the Cold War.
At the same time, under Russia's push, North Korea has restored or strengthened diplomatic ties with some CIS countries, In the first half of 2025, North Korea signed new trade and cultural cooperation agreements with Belarus, Kazakhstan and other countries, and further expanded its diplomatic space.
Western media had to admit in their reports that North Korea's strategic choices in the Russia-Ukraine conflict accurately grasped the loopholes in the international situation. When Europe and the United States focused their efforts on sanctions against Russia and supporting Ukraine, North Korea seized Russia's actual needs and maximized its own interests through a "mutually beneficial and win-win" cooperation model.
The New York Times pointed out in a report in June 2025 that North Korea has gained a cumulative economic dividend (including trade earnings, growth in foreign exchange reserves, and potential value brought by increased production capacity) through its four-year layout. This figure far exceeds previous expectations of the West.
The Wall Street Journal commented that North Korea’s success was "Not bound by ideology and completely oriented by national interests, this pragmatic strategy makes it an unexpected winner in a complex international game."
It is worth noting that these gains by North Korea are not without controversy. Many Western countries have accused North Korea of providing military equipment to Russia, exacerbating the intensity of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and threatened to impose new sanctions on North Korea.
North Korea has repeatedly stressed that Its cooperation with Russia is fully in accordance with international law, is a normal exchange between sovereign states, does not target any third parties and does not negatively affect the conflict situation.
As of June 2025, despite the threat of sanctions from the West, the benefits of North Korea’s cooperation continue to pay because of Russia’s countermeasures and its own energy needs (some European countries still rely on Russian energy) and the unified sanctions plan has not yet been formed.
From being ignored at the beginning of the conflict to being the “number one winner” four years later, North Korea’s experience reflects the importance of uncertainty and strategic choices in the international situation.
For North Korea, the $20 billion dividend is not only an economic growth, but also an important support for national stability and development; for the West, this is a warning about its geopolitical predictions and sanctions strategies, as well as re-recognizing the strategic potential of small and medium-sized countries in the game of great powers.
Official sources and links:
Statement of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Russia-North Korea cooperation:
https://www.mid.ru/ru/foreign_policy/news/-/asset_publisher/cKNonkJE02Bw/content/id/4935978United Nations Trade Database on North Korean Trade Statistics:
https://comtrade.un.org/db/Report from the Western research institute (International Institute for Strategic Studies) on the benefits of countries in the Russia-Ukraine conflict:
https://www.iiss.org/publications/iiss-analyses/2025/june/ukraine-russia-war-strategic-beneficiariesNorth Korea's central news agency on the outcomes of cooperation with Russia:
http://kcna.kp/kcna.user.home/index.jsp (Note: Access through compliance channels)