SEOUL, South Korea — Following high-level discussions in Pyongyang this week, North Korea and Russia have come to a new agreement to enhance their economic collaboration, as reported by the North’s state media on Thursday. This development occurs amidst their shared opposition to the United States.

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) did not delve into the specifics of the agreement, which was signed on Wednesday between senior trade representatives from North Korea and a Russian delegation led by Alexandr Kozlov, who serves as Russia’s minister of natural resources and ecology. Meanwhile, Russian news outlet Tass reported that officials decided to increase charter flights between the two nations to bolster tourism during an earlier set of discussions.

Kozlov’s visit began on Sunday, during which he met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Premier Kim Tok Hun before departing on Wednesday. Reports indicate that during his stay, a gesture from Russian President Vladimir Putin included a donation of over 70 animals, such as lions and bears, to North Korea’s Central Zoo, symbolizing the deepening relationship between the two countries.

In recent months, Kim Jong Un has focused on strengthening ties with Moscow as a tactic to escape the constraints of international isolation and assert his influence. He has actively supported Putin’s actions in Ukraine and positioned North Korea as a partner in a cooperative front against the U.S.

Kim has not openly acknowledged that North Korea has been supplying military resources and personnel to Russia for its conflict in Ukraine. However, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service informed lawmakers in a private briefing on Wednesday that approximately 11,000 North Korean troops were transferred to Russia’s Kursk region in late October – a location where Ukrainian forces have advanced this year – following their training in northeastern Russia.

According to the intelligence agency, these North Korean soldiers have been integrated into Russia’s marine and airborne units, with some reportedly engaging in combat alongside Russian forces on the frontlines. American, South Korean, and Ukrainian officials claim that North Korea has also been providing Russia with artillery systems, missiles, and other military materials.

A recent analysis by Lim Soo-ho, a South Korean expert at a think tank affiliated with NIS, estimated that North Korea could receive between $320 million and $1.3 billion annually from Russia for supplying its troops to Ukraine. This figure reflects the scale of troop deployment and the compensation Russia has been known to offer foreign mercenaries.

While such income would significantly aid North Korea’s struggling economy, it appears to be lower compared to revenues earned from illegal coal exports or military supplies to Russia. Lim suggests that North Korea’s troop deployments are more about obtaining vital technologies from Russia to enhance its nuclear weapons and missile development, a point of great concern for South Korea.

With nuclear negotiations with the U.S. at a standstill, Kim has intensified his confrontational stance toward South Korea, moving away from a longstanding objective of reconciliation between the two Koreas. He has made verbal threats of a nuclear attack against the South if provoked. Additionally, he has leveraged Russia’s conflict with Ukraine as an opportunity to expedite the modernization of his nuclear arsenal, which now includes various nuclear-capable systems targeting South Korea and intercontinental ballistic missiles potentially capable of reaching the continental U.S.