Russian exports to North Korea fell 81% in October while imports dropped about 51% from the previous month, according to newly released Russian customs data. The downslide in trade between the two countries supports previous reports of a total North Korean trade crash.

Two weeks ago, Chinese customs released its October trade data, which showed exports to North Korea dropping by 99% in terms of value from September. Now, Russia’s equally grim statistics bolster a theory that North Korea started to blockade imports in October, possibly in order to protect the country from COVID-19 ahead of its Oct. 10 national