North Korea-Russia passenger train reopened for 5 years...Will foreign currency earnings be linked to the dispatch of troops to Ukraine?

Russian state rail company "Russia Rail" announced on the 10th local time that passenger trains between North Korea and Russia will reopen.

According to Russia's state-run Sputnik news agency, "Russian Rail" announced that "No. 645/646" trains between North Korea's Tumen River Station and Russia's Hasan Station will resume from the 16th.

The train will run three times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and it is known that it takes about 17 minutes one way.

It is the first time in nearly five years that passenger trains between North Korea and Russia resume, and it comes as the two sides are in close contact in all directions in conjunction with the North Korean military's dispatch of the war in Ukraine.

In particular, rail operations are one of the main agendas of the "Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" signed by North Korea and Russia on the occasion of a summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and President Vladimir Putin in June this year.

Experts diagnosed that the resumption of rail operations on both sides could lead to North Korean foreign currency workers being sent to Russia, according to NK News, a U.S.-based North Korean media outlet.

NK News also pointed out that North Korean troops and batteries could be sent to the front lines of Ukraine by Russian railways.