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 sent to AFP on Friday.

Rigid socialist planning and high military spending have undermined growth in North Korea for years, as have sweeping international sanctions aimed at scuppering 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.

The turnaround has come even as Pyongyang continues its nuclear and missile programmes, which it has vowed not to abandon despite years of international pressure.

The report outlined Seoul’s basic plan for developing relations with the North through the end of the decade.

It said Pyongyang’s expanding cooperation with Moscow and improving trade conditions with Beijing were key factors supporting the recovery.

Air China resumed direct flights between Beijing and Pyongyang last month after a six-year suspension, and daily passenger rail services between the two capitals have also restarted.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2026