Rice-planting squeeze: North Korea is pushing parents to pay for schoolchildren mobilized to rice fields, with class kitchens often short on meat and oil and students reportedly foraging for wild greens when supplies run out. Labor flexibility for youth: Young workers are increasingly using “8·3 labor” on a temporary, case-by-case basis—paying fees to their assigned workplaces only when outside work appears, as state wages fail to cover basic needs. Border security indoctrination: Pyongyang used Russia’s Victory Day parade participation to run ideological lectures for security officials, stressing battlefield readiness and loyalty to Kim Jong Un. Food-security diplomacy: Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko praised Kim Jong Un as “not a dictator” and a “smart cookie,” while seeking a trade intermediary role for Russia’s Primorsky Krai to boost Belarus–DPRK commerce. Agriculture showcase: Kim Jong Un inspected the Sinuiju Combined Greenhouse Farm, highlighting high-volume vegetable output and regular supply to orphanages, schools and commercial units. Crypto fallout with DPRK link: DeFi lender Radiant Capital says it will wind down after failing to recover funds stolen in a North Korea-linked 2024 hack. Trade pressure spillover: A US bill targeting “foreign-adversary” equity in autos could unintentionally sweep in major firms with Chinese stakes, raising uncertainty for companies with North Korea-linked risk exposure.