Russia offers North Korea up to 700 thousand tons of rice for its participation in the war against Ukraine

The DPRK may receive up to 700 thousand tons of rice from Russia for its participation in the war against Ukraine. Former South Korean ambassador to Russia and member of the House of Representatives Woo Sung-luck told The Korea Herald.

According to Wee, the agreement between Russia and North Korea is “not bad at all” because North Korea’s contribution to Russia’s military actions “largely” solves the DPRK’s financial and food crises.

North Korea annually produces about 4 million tons of grain – rice, barley and wheat. However, according to Wee, most of the country’s production is potatoes, and less than a third of the total volume is produced in rice. These volumes are 1 million tons less than needed to cover the country’s needs.

“If Russia offers 600,000 to 700,000 tons of rice, it is enough to cover more than half of what North Korea will need to meet its annual demand,” Wee said.

In his opinion, the DPRK can “probably compensate for part of the food shortage in its current relations with Russia by trading arms.”

Last week, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service reported that each DPRK soldier sent to Russia would receive a salary of $2,000. Presumably, they want to send at least 10,000 soldiers to Russia, and the annual revenue in this case will exceed $200 million.

In addition to soldiers, there are currently about 4 thousand workers from the DPRK in Russia. Their salary averages about $800 per month.

Earlier it was reported that North Korea could supply Russia with weapons worth up to $5.5 billion. At the same time, even according to the most conservative estimates, the cost of the supply exceeds $1.7 billion.

As analysts have noted, North Korea’s revenues could increase by hundreds of millions of dollars more if reports of North Korean troops being sent to Ukraine are confirmed. In turn, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has already confirmed that Russia is using North Korean soldiers in the war against Ukraine.

For almost 30 years of expertise in the agri markets, UkrAgroConsult has accumulated an extensive database, which became the basis of the platform AgriSupp.

It is a multi-functional online platform with market intelligence for grains and oilseeds that enables to get access to daily operational information on the Black Sea & Danube markets, analytical reports, historical data.

You are welcome to get a 7-day free demo access!!!

Tags: Russia, rice, North Korea, war