Russian officials and businesspeople have called for the return of North Korean construction workers to help boost the economy in the Russian-DPRK border region, as the weak ruble reduces the labor supply.

Business ombudsperson Marina Shemilina from Primorsky province, which borders North Korea, told Russian state media that North Korean workers could fill the gap left by migrant workers “who are projected to leave the region soon because of the current U.S. dollar exchange rate against the ruble.”

Shemilina’s calls were echoed by the Primorye Builders Alliance, an association of construction companies in Primorsky province. Alliance board member Evgeniy