North Koreans say that the BBC has sent it to work like a slave in Russia.

The BBC has been sent to thousands of North Koreans under the same conditions as Russian slaves to fill the tremendous labor shortage that has worsened by the ongoing Ukrainian invasion of Ukraine.

Moscow used missiles, artillery shells and soldiers to repeatedly head to Pyongyang to help fight war.

Now, when many Russians in Russia have been killed, battle or fled in the country, the South Korean intelligence officials told the BBC that Moscow is increasingly dependent on North Korean workers.

We interviewed people who helped rescue six North Korean workers, civil servants, researchers and workers who escaped Russia since the beginning of the war.

They explained in detail how men are experiencing “abyss” labor conditions and how North Korean authorities control workers to prevent escape.

One of the workers, Jin, arrived at the Far East of Russia when he arrived at the BBC’s Far East, moved from the airport to the chapter, and he ordered no one to talk or see anything.

“The external world is our enemies.” Agent said to him. He was left directly to build a high -rise apartment block for more than 18 hours a day, he said.

We described the same punishment as all six workers we said. You need to get up at 6 am and build a high -rise apartment at 2 am the next day.

We changed their names to protect them.

Another construction worker who escaped from Russia last year said, “I realized that waking should repeat the same day again.” Tae could not be paralyzed in the morning of the day, and could not be opened in the day before.

“Some people sleep or sleep in one day, but the supervisors will find them and win.

Kang Dong-wan, a professor at Dong-A University in Korea, said, “The condition is truly serious,” he traveled to Russia several times to interview North Korean workers.

“Workers are exposed to very dangerous situations. At night, it works in the darkness with little safety equipment.”

The escape said that workers are limited to the construction site day and night and are monitored by the North Korean national security department. They sleep with dirty and overcrowded ship containers, infected with worms, or the bottom of the unfinished apartment block, and waterproof guns are pulled over the door frame to prevent the cold.

One worker NAM once said that he could not work by “crushing” face at a place 4 meters from the building site. Nevertheless, his supervisors did not leave the scene to visit the hospital.

In the past, tens of thousands of North Koreans worked in Russia, earning millions of pounds every year for North Korean leader Kim Jong -un (KIM JONG UN) and his cash regime. The country, which was banned in 2019, was then sent to most homes to prevent the use of these workers and to reduce Kim’s funds and prevent nuclear weapons.

However, according to the Korean information officials speaking to the BBC and the BBC for anonymous conditions, more than 10,000 workers were sent to Russia last year. They are expected to arrive more this year, and Pyongyang can dispatch a total of 50,000 workers.

Sudden inflow means that North Korean workers are now “everywhere in Russia.” Most of them were assigned to a clothing factory during the large -scale construction project, and the center was assigned in violation of UN sanctions that prohibit the use of North Korean labor.

According to the Russian government’s figures, more than 13,000 North Korea increased 12 times compared to the previous year in 2024. Almost 8,000 of them entered the student visa, but according to information officials and experts, this is a tactic used by Russia to bypass the UN ban.

In June, Sergei Shoigu, a senior Russian civil servant, was sent to rebuild Kursk, a Russian region seized by the Ukrainian army last year, but for the first time since it was withdrawn.

South Korean officials also said that some North Koreans soon “were more likely to carry out the reconstruction project of the Russian Occupation Ukrainian territory.”

“Russia is currently suffering from serious labor, and North Korea offers a perfect solution.

This overseas construction job is greatly greedy for North Korea because it promises to pay a better cost than working at home in North Korea. Most workers are hoping that they can start their business when they avoid poverty and buy or come back for their families. Only the most reliable men are selected after strictly investigated, and they must leave their families.

However, most of the income is sent directly to North Korea as “loyalty fees.” The remaining part between $ 100-200 (£ 74-£ 149) a month is displayed in the ledger. Workers receive this money only when they come home. Recent experts say that they are described to prevent running away.

If men realize the harsh work and the reality of lack of wages, shatter can be broken. Te said he was “embarrassed” when other construction workers from Central Asia were receiving five times more money for one -third of the work. “I felt like I was in the labor camp. It’s a prison without a bar,” he said.

Workers are still intense when they remember how other workers call them slaves. “You are not a man but a machine that you can say.” At one point, Jin’s manager said he would not receive money when the state returned to North Korea instead. Then he decided to put his life in danger to escape.

TAE decided to defect after watching YouTube video showing the number of employees in Korea. One night, he wrapped his belongings in the trash liner and filled the blanket under the bed sheet, still sleeping and squeaking at the construction site. He welcomed a taxi and traveled to thousands of kilometers nationwide to meet a lawyer who prepares for a trip to Seoul.

In recent years, a small number of workers have been able to adjust the escape using the forbidden used smartphones, and have saved a small daily allowance for cigarettes and alcohol.

In order to prevent this escape, the North Korean authorities say that the North Korean authorities are now cracking down on the limited freedom of workers.

According to Kang-A University’s Kang, one of the ways the regime attempted to control workers last year is to apply to more frequent ideological training and self-criticism sessions.

There is also a rare opportunity to leave the construction site. Professor Kang added, “The workers went to the group once a month, but recently this trip has been reduced to zero.”

Kim Seung-Chul, an activist based in Seoul, which helps rescue North Korean workers in Russia, said that this outing is more strictly controlled. “They were able to leave in pairs, but they had to travel to five groups since 2023 and have been monitored more strongly.”

In this climate, fewer workers are escaping. The South Korean government told us that every year, North Korea’s arrival in Seoul and arriving in Seoul every year has been disputed from about 20 to half to half a year since 2022.

Lankov, a North Korean-Russian relationship expert, said that more workers are preparing more workers.

“These workers will be a continuous legacy of Kim and Putin’s war friendship,” he argued that workers will continue to arrive for a long time after the war.

Additional report between Jake Kwon and HOSU LEE