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Russian Ambassador to Korea Gleb Ivashentsov delivers a speech during the World Korean Forum in Seoul, Wednesday. / Korea Times Photo
by Kim Se-jeong |
By Kim Se-jeong
Staff Reporter
Russia will not tolerate any kind of military threat from North Korea, the Russian ambassador said Wednesday, warning its long-time ally, which proclaimed an ``all-out war posture'' against South Korea last week.
Speaking at the World Korean Forum at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul, Ambassador Gleb A. Ivashentsov, said, ``We oppose a missile test or nuclear activity by North Korea near our border. When it carried out a nuclear test in October 2006, the site was only 177 kilometers away from Russian territory.'' The forum was hosted by the Korean Global Foundation and supported by www.hankooki.com.
In a statement issued last Saturday, the communist North threatened an ``all-out confrontational posture'' against the South.
Seoul responded calmly to the North's threat, which analysts said was mainly aimed at the new U.S. government.
Instead, Ambassador Ivashentsov suggested that the two Koreas engaged more peacefully through economic projects. ``There is no better way than long-term economic projects to rebuild trust between South and North Korea."
The Trans Siberian Railroad-Trans Korean Railroad (TSR-TKR) project and establishment of a gas pipeline would leverage the impaired relationship, he said.
The TSR-TKR is expected to connect the Korean Peninsula and open the route to the doorstep of Europe, and the gas pipeline is expected to enhance energy security for heavily foreign-oil dependent South Korea, he said.
Negotiations between the three countries on railroad projects are already underway, Ivashentsov noted.
Russia and North Korea last year agreed on the modernization of a 52-kilometer-long railroad between Najin port in the East Coast of North Korea and Hasan in Russia and the construction of a cargo terminal at the port. South Korea supported it, he said.
The ambassador spoke out against talks at the international level about regime change in North Korea. ``Pressure from the international community won't bring about regime change in North Korea. Regime change can only start internally with the support of domestic politics.''
Likewise, human rights issues in the impoverished country are ``an internal problem,'' he said, affirming that the Russian government has no intention to interfere.
As for South Korea-Russia relations, the ambassador presented a positive outlook, especially for next year, when the two countries celebrate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties. It will offer momentum for further cooperation and exchange, he said.
skim@koreatimes.co.kr
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