Reports have surfaced that North Korea dispatched new construction workers to Russia’s Far East in late November 2024.
According to a local source in Vladivostok—who requested anonymity for security reasons—North Korean laborers were recently deployed to the Churikin district of the city, an area now under tight security by local police, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported on February 6.
The source told RFA that “the Churikin-Tikhaya region, located slightly outside Vladivostok’s city center, is currently undergoing major new construction development. North Korean construction workers, sent in late November last year, are reportedly still stationed there.”
The source also noted growing speculation that the North Koreans may not have been sent solely for construction work. “Some suspect they may have actually been deployed as military personnel, rather than just construction workers, because their presence is too quiet for an active construction site,” the source said.
Another local source in Vladivostok, also speaking anonymously for security reasons, confirmed that reports of new North Korean labor deployments to construction sites in the city had been spreading. “The workers are living at the sites under the protection of police forces,” the source told RFA.
According to the source, “Around 1,000 North Korean workers arrived in Vladivostok via a Russian vessel late last year. They were assigned to a newly constructed apartment complex near the coastal area of Russky Island in mid-December.”
The presence of North Korean workers was revealed through employment agencies that arrange local construction labor, the source said. However, “due to the cold weather, they are not visible at any construction sites.”
The Churikin-Tikhaya area has undergone significant development with multiple large apartment complexes, but access remains highly restricted. “The new buildings have completed structural work and have windows installed, making it difficult to observe the North Korean workers from outside,” the source noted.
Despite this, many locals have expressed skepticism about the timing of the workers’ arrival. “Typically, construction in Vladivostok halts during the winter when temperatures drop to minus 30 degrees Celsius. People are puzzled as to why North Korea sent construction workers in such extreme weather conditions late last year,” the source added.
BY YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.youngnam@koreadaily.com]
