China, Russia ties driving North Korean economic recovery: Seoul

North Korea's economy is showing signs of recovery as Pyongyang deepens trade and diplomatic ties with Russia and China, South Korea's unification ministry said in a report.



Rigid socialist planning and high military spending have undermined growth in North Korea for years, as have sweeping international sanctions aimed at destroying its development of nuclear weapons.



China has long been the diplomatically isolated country's main economic backer, though Pyongyang has also drawn closer to Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.



Those relationships are now driving an improved economic outlook, with the North appearing to have "moved beyond a period of contraction" and "entered a phase of gradual recovery", according to the South Korean ministry.