By Kim Jong-chan
Political Editor
New Ambassador to Russia Lee Youn-ho reignited talks about a tripartite natural gas pipeline involving North Korea, in a meeting with reporters on the sidelines of an annual conference of mission chiefs abroad in Seoul that ended late last week.
A South Korea-Russia agreement to cooperate on building the gas pipeline has yet to be realized due to the current situation on the Korean Peninsula. The agreement came in a summit between Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow in September 2008.
The ambassador, who accompanied President Lee on his trip to Moscow in his capacity as knowledge economy minister, expressed his desire to push the contemplated gas pipeline project forward. He is to assume the post on Feb. 28.
If the pipeline comes from Siberia to South Korea via North Korea, it will not only be economically beneficial but also be very meaningful politically. It could be linked to railway and electricity networks in North Korea. Once railways of the two Koreas are connected to the Trans-Siberian Railway, South Koreans can travel to Europe by crossing Siberia by train, not to mention benefits to cargo transportation.
The idea of a South Korea-North Korea-Russia natural gas pipeline came out a decade ago, yet North Korea has given no answer amid chilly inter-Korean relations.
New Russian Ambassador to South Korea Konstantin V. Vnukov also spoke of the project in an interview. His view was that those gas pipeline and railway plans could be incentives for North Korea facing deepening economic trouble, if it decides to scrap its nuclear programs.
The assumption of ambassadorial posts by Vnukov and Lee Youn-ho coincides with events to mark the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two nations.
Following the end of the Cold War decades ago, Nordpolitik (Northern Policy), former President Roh Tae-woo's signature foreign policy, led the nation to reach out to traditional allies of North Korea, including the former Soviet Union and other communist East European-bloc countries.
In February 1989, Hungary became the first East European nation to establish formal ties with South Korea, followed by Poland in November, former Yugoslavia in December of the same year and the Soviet Union in September 1990.
It's hard to see whether the idea of bringing natural gas from Russia via North Korea will be realized or not since North Korea has shown few signs of abandoning its nuclear programs to ensure the security of its regime. Moreover, Russia's clout over North Korea has waned as the North Korean economy depends greatly on China.
But rays of hope may filter down as President Medvedev is expected to visit Seoul for the G-20 Summit in November, and celebrations to mark two decades of Seoul-Moscow ties might also bring Medvedev's predecessor, Vladmir Putin, now prime minister, to South Korea. Betting against the tripartite gas pipeline would not be wise.
jckim@koreatimes.co.kr
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