The head of the DPRK, Kim Jong Un, accumulated $22 billion in additional wealth after the start of russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022, Bloomberg reports, writes UNN.
Kim Jong Un of North Korea has more cash at his disposal than ever before during his 15 years in power. His family dictatorship received up to $22 billion in foreign income from 2022 to 2025,
This record amount is reportedly almost four times the sum accumulated during the previous four-year period, immediately after the United States persuaded China and russia to sign United Nations sanctions aimed at depriving Kim of hard currency to advance his nuclear program. Since those restrictions were imposed, Kim has nevertheless managed to expand his nuclear deterrent, strengthen ties with key diplomatic partners, and increase his sources of income, the publication notes.
"The turning point came in 2022, when vladimir putin stunned the world by invading Ukraine and offered Kim an unexpected lifeline. As moscow was expending ammunition, it turned to Pyongyang for a rare source of Soviet-era artillery. North Korea’s domestic stockpiles suddenly became a valuable resource that Kim was able to convert into cash, food aid, and advanced military technology," the article says.
According to Ukrainian intelligence estimates cited by the publication, by the end of 2025 North Korea had supplied up to 50% of russia’s needs for commonly used 122 mm and 152 mm caliber ammunition. Kim reinforced his shell supplies with soldiers, deploying between 16,000 and 22,000 servicemen in exchange for about $2,000 per month each, according to South Korean estimates and data from the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Thousands of these men were killed on the battlefield, including many who took their own lives rather than be captured, while North Korea received additional payments for each death.
"Military cooperation between North Korea and russia is no longer merely a diplomatic or security issue," said South Korean opposition lawmaker Kang Dae-sik, who sits on the parliamentary defense committee and receives information from the country’s intelligence agency about Pyongyang’s participation in russia’s war in Ukraine. "It has become a key source of income supporting the North Korean economy."
The Bank of South Korea estimates that its neighbor’s economy grew by 3.5% in 2025. This was the country’s third consecutive year of economic growth, although growth was somewhat weaker than in 2024, when North Korea recorded its strongest performance since sanctions were tightened.
China appears to have taken notice after years of cooling relations with Pyongyang due to its deepening ties with moscow. At a military parade in Beijing last September, Kim stood alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and kremlin chief vladimir putin, demonstrating friendship between the nuclear powers. Kim’s teenage daughter, Ju Ae, joined him, signaling that she is likely his successor, the publication writes.
The transfer of Russian technology enabled North Korea to "compress the timeline for weapons development," a U.S. Forces Korea official, which oversees American troops stationed in the South, said in response to written questions.
russia and North Korea, which share a tiny 17-kilometer land border, are also producing strike drones, which could "create additional long-term security risks in the region," said Ukrainian Presidential Commissioner for Sanctions Policy Vladyslav Vlasiuk.
Ballistic missiles from Pyongyang used on the battlefield "are not simple copies of the Russian Iskander system," Vlasiuk added. "North Korea has significantly improved the design and created its own modifications with distinctive technical features," he said.
"This opens the way for Kim to seek another source of income: weapons clients beyond Moscow," the publication notes.