Despite what looks like rapidly warming ties, the volume of Russia-DPRK trade has fallen sharply so far in 2014.

Data from the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency revealed on Thursday showed that, for January-September 2014, Russian exports to the North had fallen 10 percent from the previous year, to a little more than $59 million.

Russian exports of flour, electronics and coal to the North showed particularly steep declines, the Yonhap News Agency pointed out.

Furthermore, Russian imports from the North amounted to $6.46 million during the first nine months of the year, a 7.9 percent drop.

Leonid Petrov, a