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Russia to Play Active Role in Settling Korea Peninsula Problem: PM
Russia supports the approach of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Republic of Korea (ROK) in all fields, and is ready to play an active role in the settlement on the Korean Peninsula, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov said Tuesday.
Russia is closely following the dialogue between ROK and DPRK, and is prepared to contribute politically and economically to bringing Pyongyang and Seoul closer together, Kasyanov told a joint news conference after a meeting with his ROK counterpart Lee Han Dong, who arrived here Monday for a four-day official visit.
Russia is also prepared to take part in modernizing the industrial plants built in the DPRK with the help of the former Soviet Union, as well as in restoring the railroad link between the South and the North, Kasyanov said.
Moreover, Moscow hopes to contribute to the restoration of the Seoul-Wonsan railroad, which could be extended into Russia and linked up with the Trans-Siberian line, he said.
After the talks, the two sides signed an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the fuel and energy industry. Various draft projects in this field will be studied in detail, Kasyanov said.
Lee, for his part, told the press that Russia and the Republic of Korea will carry out a feasibility study for the construction of a gas pipeline running from Russia's Kovyktinskoye field to China and South Korea, across the DPRK.
The two sides agreed to promote the trade in arms and in constructing an industrial zone in the Russian Nakhodka free-trade area, he said.
The talks also addressed Russia's repayment of the former USSR's nearly 1.7 billion U.S. dollar debt to South Korea, Kasyanov said.
The debt will be partly repaid with helicopters, defensive hardware, nonferrous metals and raw commodities for South Korea, he said.
An agreement to this regard will be implemented in 2001. Then, the two countries will subsequently sign a new accord on repaying the remnant debt, he added.
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