hankyoreh

Russia’s top security official Sergei Shoigu lands in Pyongyang on June 17, 2025. (TASS/Yonhap)

After Russia’s top security official met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on a visit to Pyongyang on Tuesday, North Korea announced it would send 6,000 military construction workers and combat engineers to Russia.

The state-owned RIA Novosti news agency and other Russian media reported Tuesday that Sergei Shoigu, the secretary of Russia’s Security Council, had disclosed the deal following his visit to North Korea.

Shoigu said that North Korea had agreed to send 5,000 construction workers and 1,000 combat engineers for clearing landmines to the western Russian region of Kursk, which had been contested by Ukrainian troops.

North Korea officially acknowledged in April that it had sent troops to support the Russian defense of Kursk following a Ukrainian sneak attack. With the help of North Korean troops, Russia recovered a section of Kursk that had been occupied by Ukraine, rapidly tightening the bond between Russia and North Korea.

The North Korean construction workers and engineers are expected to not only help rebuild roads, bridges and buildings destroyed in the fighting in Kursk but also to engage in the dangerous job of removing landmines.

Shoigu said he hopes air service between Russia and North Korea, which has been suspended for more than three decades, will resume in the near future.

Shoigu’s visit to North Korea was his first in about two weeks and his third in the last three months. The frequency of his visits is generally regarded as unusual, even given the increasing cordiality of Pyongyang-Moscow relations.

“[Shoigu] made this visit to hold talks with the North Korean leadership about implementing agreements reached during his earlier visit on June 4. These agreements are being implemented under Russia’s Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty with North Korea,” a spokesperson for Russia’s Security Council said.

According to an explanation by the Security Council, Shoigu essentially visited Pyongyang as a special envoy for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

While the details of his mission have not been disclosed, the leading view is that he was delivering Russia’s response to the request Kim made for exchange between the two sides on June 4.

By Cho Ki-weon, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]