Andy Sharp

Nearly 80 years ago, the Soviet Union helped create North Korea. Now North Korean soldiers are dying to defend Russia. It’s quite the reversal. For my latest piece for @NikkeiAsia, I look at how the war in Ukraine has transformed relations between Moscow and Pyongyang, and why the partnership could last long after the fighting stops. North Korea has sent thousands of soldiers to Russia, along with vast quantities of ammunition and tens of thousands of workers. In return, Kim Jong Un is getting hard currency, military expertise, potentially dangerous technology and a powerful ally that has helped undermine international sanctions. There are good reasons to think this arrangement will endure. Russia’s chronic labor shortage will only get worse, while Moscow will need to replenish its depleted weapons stocks. North Korea, meanwhile, has found a lucrative customer for its weapons and manpower, and an alternative to its traditional dependence on China. There’s also something less tangible at play. As one person familiar with Moscow’s thinking told me, there is a Russian “debt of gratitude” toward North Koreans for “shedding their blood for Russia.” I spoke to a former North Korean diplomat, Russia experts, military officers and officials in Seoul and elsewhere about what comes next, including the implications for security in Europe and East Asia. asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/po…

. @JamesDJBrown compares the difference in treatment by the Japanese and the US governments of journalists detained by Putin. Not very favorably for Tokyo. asia.nikkei.com/opinion/russ…

Russia has been a blind spot for Japan at least since the days of Abe. asia.nikkei.com/politics/int…

More great news on the real wage front, just need a consistent run of gains now after a long losing streak.

My latest looks at how North Korea’s purported heist on Binance came from Pyongyang playing the long game. With help from @martyn_williams and Yeji Kim. asia.nikkei.com/spotlight/cr…

Play it in Japan?

Japan has “no time to lose” in heading off a health care crisis, Health Minister Kenichiro Ueno tells @NikkeiAsia "The sustainability of Japan’s universal health insurance system is being called into question.” By 2040, more than 39 million people are projected to be 65 or older, while the working-age population falls by 11 million. Without action to secure staff, Ueno warns, “there could be problems such as some regions being left without doctors.” The goal, he says, is a system that supports health care “no matter where you are in the country.” Read my latest here: asia.nikkei.com/editor-s-pic…

Inside the world's largest overseas US military base Can you guess where it is? asia.nikkei.com/politics/def… via @NikkeiAsia

Japan desperately needs more nurses as its population ages, but it’s struggling to attract foreign talent. In my latest for @NikkeiAsia , the head of the Japanese Nursing Association warns that low pay and tough language requirements are putting off overseas recruits. Just 8.5% of foreign candidates passed the national nursing exam last year. “Filipino nurses can speak English, so as the yen has weakened, increasing numbers are choosing to go to Europe or the United States,” Tomoya Akiyama told us. Even Japanese nurses are looking abroad. “Some Japanese nurses now want to work as care workers in Sweden or elsewhere in Europe,” Akiyama said. asia.nikkei.com/business/hea…