On February 15, 2024, North Korean state media reported that leader Kim Jong-un inspected the test launch of the new “Eagle-6” naval anti-ship missile on February 14. He also visited an artillery factory, although the date of that visit was not specified.

In Russia, the State Duma on the 24th voted to approve a draft budget that significantly increases defense spending by nearly 30% for the coming year. This boost is attributed to the Kremlin reallocating substantial resources for its offensive against Ukraine, raising the defense budget to approximately 13.5 trillion rubles (about $145 billion), which surpasses the total allocated for social welfare and education. A second reading of this budget draft is scheduled for November 14.

Moscow has escalated military spending to unprecedented levels not seen since the Soviet era in order to sustain missile and drone assaults on Ukraine and to pay substantial salaries to hundreds of thousands of frontline soldiers. It’s important to note that this budget figure excludes other expenditures tied to military operations, including those designated under “national security” and certain classified expenses.

Defense and security spending is projected to account for around 40% of the total Russian government budget, with expectations that it will rise to 41.5 trillion rubles by 2025, significantly squeezing funding for other economic sectors. The draft budget allocates more than double the amount for “defense” compared to Moscow’s allocations for “social policy.”

Meanwhile, Russian troops are advancing into eastern Ukraine, successfully capturing numerous towns and villages from a Ukrainian military that is facing significant strains on its forces.

Before submitting the budget draft to the Russian Parliament, Moscow authorities declared intentions to increase investment and social welfare while also augmenting military expenditures. However, the budget proposal passed today clearly indicates that military spending is crowding out funding for other economic areas.

Additionally, on the 23rd, the United States announced intelligence indicating that North Korea has sent troops to the Russian Far East for training, corroborating earlier claims from Ukrainian and South Korean intelligence agencies. It remains uncertain whether these North Korean troops will be deployed to Ukraine to engage in combat.

According to a report from South Korea’s National Intelligence Service on the 18th, North Korea dispatched 1,500 special forces members to Vladivostok, Russia, between the 8th and 13th of this month, with plans to send a total of 12,000 personnel.

Sam Cranny-Evans, an analyst with the UK think tank Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), suggested that North Korean troops could assist at the front by handling logistics and construction tasks. This may include transporting ammunition and digging defensive positions, enabling Russia to deploy more of its own soldiers to combat.