North Korea is using bonded warehouses in China to sell ginseng, accordions and more to foreign buyers under a new e-commerce scheme, according to state media, marketing its products on a joint website set up with China and Russia.

The newly revealed initiative points to a DPRK effort to leverage ties with its closest international partners to boost exports through online sales, following failed efforts to do so in the past via domestic platforms.

But while using China as a supply hub gives North Korea access to much larger markets, one expert raised concerns that Pyongyang could use online trade