Russia plans to ‘import’ 12,000 ‘shahed collectors’ from North Korea – GUR

11:59, 14.11.2025 1 min read

By the end of 2025, Russia plans to recruit approximately 12,000 North Korean workers to work at enterprises in the Alabuga Separate Economic Zone in Tatarstan, according to the Main Intelligence Agency (GUR) of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.

"It is in Alabuga that the long-range Shadeds/Geran drones, which the Russian army uses to carry out terrorist strikes on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure, are manufactured. To discuss the details of the labor sale, a meeting was held at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in late October between local officials and representatives of the North Korean company Jihyang Technology Trade Company, which is responsible for the search and selection of Korean workers," the Telegram channel reported.

The Russians promise to pay foreign labor force approximately $2.50 per hour, and their shifts will last at least 12 hours.

"Such measures indicate a deepening of strategic cooperation between the two dictatorships to continue the aggressive war against Ukraine," the GUR noted.