>>63803506
Russia is paying them with EVERYTHING. Just the ammunition alone doubled the DPRK's effective GDP* and that doesn't take into account equipment and troops. Greenhouses, textile mills, CnC equipment, massive amounts of aquaculture and nursery equipment, none of this comes from Russia. So they trade and barter because it is more cost effective than sending gold that gets turned into RMB to buy it.
*GDP is a shitty metric especially in regards to the DPRK who doesn't actually need money for many things.
The potatoes are a multipart part issue;
>Kim wants food now, no potato no troops
>Kim needs modernized agriculture, to which end many Soviet era remnants are going to NK like their entire goat breeding program and things like that
>Russia is undergoing agricultural massive disruption to fertilizer production
>Russia also needs nitrates for munitions production
>Kim needs it for both ammo and food
>No potatoes for Nork hatchlings no food for the D-30s and Grads
>Kim and Luka are probably collaborating in some way
So yes potatoes are involved as are alot of other things. Putin is very lucky the DPRK is so centralized with a relatively small population, none of this would work with any other nation.
>>63803566
Norks outright stole it, set up a fake company then one Monday it was just a empty building.
