Lee, Putin agree to cooperate in handling NK nuke issue

By Na Jeong-ju

President Lee Myung-bak and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin agreed Thursday to work closely together to move the international talks on denuclearizing North Korea forward, Cheong Wa Dae said.

At their meeting in Moscow, Lee and Putin also shared the common understanding that an early resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue was crucial for peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula as well as Northeast Asia, according to the office.

Lee arrived in the Russian capital earlier in the day for a two-day visit. He will move to Yaroslavl, about 250 kilometers northeast of Moscow, today to participate in an international forum and to hold a bilateral summit with President Dmitry Medvedev.

Lee is seeking to coordinate policies on North Korea during the Russia trip as the countries engaged in the six-party talks on Pyongyang’s nuclear program are stepping up dialogue to resume the stalled dialogue.

The United States said Tuesday that Stephen Bosworth, the special representative for North Korea policy, will travel to Seoul, Beijing and Tokyo next week to discuss ways to move the nuclear talks forward.

“Lee and Putin agreed to cooperate closely in handling the North Korean nuclear issue,” Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.

Lee has said he doesn’t want to advance the multilateral talks without addressing the sinking of the South Korean naval vessel Cheonan last March, which Seoul claims was the result of a torpedo attack by a North Korean submarine. Pyongyang has denied its involvement.

Lee has been under growing pressure here to make an “exit strategy” to the Cheonan incident and soften his North Korea policy amid reports that the communist country wants to return to the nuclear talks.

Presidential aides said the ship sinking wasn’t a topic at Lee’s meeting with Putin and won’t be discussed either at today’s summit with Medvedev.

However, many observers say Russia could share details of its own investigation into the sinking. Russia reportedly refuted Seoul’s claims that a North Korean submarine torpedoed the ship and concluded that it was more likely a mine rather than a torpedo that caused the ship to sink.

Russia and China, permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, opposed a Seoul-proposed U.N. resolution laying blame on North Korea over the naval incident.

Upon arrival in Moscow, Lee attended an economic forum organized by Russian entrepreneurs. In a speech, he called for closer economic ties between the two nations, saying Seoul will provide all possible assistance to make Moscow’s ongoing economic modernization project successful.

At the World Political Forum in Yaroslavl today, Lee plans to deliver a keynote speech on Korea’s economic growth and transition to a democratic society.