Lee, Medvedev Plan Gas Pipeline Going Through N.Korea

President Lee Myung-bak and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev yesterday agreed to conduct joint research on installing a pipeline to run through North Korea.

The two leaders held summit talks at the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow, where they also decided to upgrade bilateral relations from a complementary and constructive partnership to a strategic partnership.

They adopted a joint declaration containing 10 provisions including Seoul`s annual import of 7.5 million tons of Russian pipeline natural gas (PNG) from 2015 for the next 30 years.

With the upgrade in bilateral relations, cooperation between the two nations is likely to expand in all areas including economy, politics, diplomacy, security and defense.

To this end, the two leaders agreed to hold strategic dialogue between deputy foreign ministers and pursue military cooperation such as personnel and technology exchanges.

President Lee expressed his government’s efforts to promote inter-Korean relations for co-prosperity and support for Russia’s constructive role in the six-party talks for the resolution of the North Korean nuclear crisis. In return, Medvedev emphasized the importance of inter-Korean dialogue in achieving peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

The two leaders also agreed to promote diverse cooperation in energy, resources and logistics such as connecting the Trans-Korean Railway with the Trans-Siberian Railway; developing a liquefied natural gas plant in Russian Far East; and building joint petrochemical plants and gas pipelines for companies of both nations.

Medvedev accepted President Lee’s invitation to Korea at his convenience.

Immediately after their talks, Lee and Medvedev signed memorandums of understanding on 26 items, including short-term, multiple-entry visas, mineral resource cooperation, gas supply and financial cooperation.

swpark@donga.com