The first road bridge linking Russia and North Korea opened this month, providing a striking physical symbol of the extraordinary closeness the two nations have developed since Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine in early 2022. And while the relationship was long seen as a shallow arms-trade arrangement, it has since become deep and broad—a full-fledged military alliance.

Since September 2023, North Korea has supplied Russia with more than 15 million artillery rounds and at least 150 ballistic missiles. A 2026 nato Defense College study found that the value of those arms shipments reached more than $7 billion by April 2025—an extraordinary sum for an economy the size of North Korea’s.

More significantly, North Korea has sent more than 16,000 military personnel to fight alongside Russian forces in the war. Though long denied by both sides, North Korea publicly confirmed in April 2025 that it had deployed troops to Russia, acknowledging that they fought alongside Russian forces in the Kursk region to repel a Ukrainian invasion. North Korea later dispatched roughly 1,000 military engineers to clear mines from the area, as well as an advanced missile unit to be armed with 120 ballistic missiles.

Significantly larger numbers of North Korean personnel may soon follow, with Ukrainian intelligence warning that 30,000 to 50,000 could soon join the war.

Meanwhile, with Russian workers being pulled into the war or fleeing the country, North Korea is sending laborers to fill the gaps. Some 25,000 men and women—essentially slaves—are now working in military-drone manufacturing facilities inside Russia, according to a September 16 report by the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team. To skirt sanctions, these North Korean workers are registered in Russia as students. They earn an average of $7,500 annually, but nearly all of this is confiscated by North Korea’s regime.

In addition to this cash, the regime receives advanced military and space technology—including missile guidance systems, air-defense equipment, electronic-warfare technology and assistance with military satellites—in return for all that it gives Russia. The nation also gains something it could scarcely acquire elsewhere: firsthand battlefield experience in modern warfare. Chatham House summed up the relationship: “North Korea replenishes Russia’s war machine, while Russia improves North Korea’s future ability to wage war.”

It’s clear that North Korea is no longer a mere tributary to Russia’s war effort; it has become part of the same current. The alliance between the two nations now runs far deeper than the waters of the Tumen River beneath their new bridge.

In light of Bible prophecy, this deepening alliance takes on great importance.

Ezekiel 38:2 warns of a ruler to arise in the modern era called the “prince of Rosh” (New King James Version), or the “prince of Russia.” Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry has identified Vladimir Putin as this prince. In his 2017 booklet The Prophesied ‘Prince of Russia,’ he writes: “This world has a lot of authoritarian rulers. But Vladimir Putin is one we need to keep a particularly close eye on. His track record, his nationality and his ideology show that he is fulfilling a linchpin Bible prophecy. The time frame of his rule also shows that nobody else could be fulfilling the Ezekiel 38 and 39 prophecy.”

These chapters in Ezekiel show that this “prince” will soon be at the head of a massive military power that will play a key role in the third world war. Revelation 9:16 gives a sense of how massive this power will be: “the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand.”

That is 200 million troops—some 15 times bigger than the largest military force ever assembled in human history. Yet Russia, with a population under 145 million, could never field this number of troops on its own.

Ezekiel 38 lists several ancient names indicating modern Asian countries that will subordinate themselves to Russia and join their armies to form this 200 million-man force. Verses 2-5 give names signifying modern China and India. And verse 6 names Gomer, which is the main ancestor of several Asian peoples, including the modern Koreans.

These passages show that Korean soldiers will make up a significant part of the colossal multinational force that Putin will soon lead. To see North Korea today subordinating itself to Putin’s Russia, supplying vast amounts of weaponry, and even sending tens of thousands of troops and laborers to further the war effort shows that the groundwork is being laid for North Korea to take its place in the Putin-led 200 million-man army.

As North Korea and nations such as China and India increasingly move with the Russian current, it is clear that turbulent times lie ahead for their peoples and the whole world. But Mr. Flurry’s booklet points beyond those troubled waters to a future filled with hope. He writes:

Vladimir Putin is a sign, literally a SIGN [of] one of the most inspiring messages in the Bible. What we are seeing in Russia ultimately leads to the transition from man ruling man to God ruling man! … A great transition is about to occur.

To understand these Bible prophecies and the details of one of the “most inspiring messages in the Bible,” order your free copy of The Prophesied ‘Prince of Russia.’