Reuters
A series of reciprocal visits between Russia and North Korea will continue this year with Kim Jong Un’s trip to Moscow
Last week, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko officially announced that preparations were underway for a visit to Moscow by Kim Jong Un, Chairman of the DPRK’s State Affairs Commission. In addition, plans are underway for Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to visit the DPRK in response to North Korean Foreign Minister Son Hui’s visit to Moscow last November. According to Rudenko, these trips are a «continuation of the strategic dialogue with Korean friends».
That dialogue is clearly deepening. On March 21–22, Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu was in Pyongyang, where he was personally received by DPRK leader Kim Jong Un. The Russian representative reportedly briefed the North Korean authorities in detail on the content of the recent Russian-US talks in Riyadh. It is believed that Kim Jong Un’s upcoming visit to Moscow and his possible participation in the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War were also discussed.
During the meeting with Kim Jong Un, Shoigu delivered a message from Vladimir Putin: «I would like to convey to you the greetings and best wishes of the President of the Russian Federation. He is paying close attention to the implementation of the agreements reached with you».
Naturally, security issues and the progress of the Special Military Operation were also on the agenda. Shoigu assured the North Korean leader of Moscow’s unconditional readiness to abide by the provisions of the treaty on the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.
«It lays down the basic principles for the development of Russian-Korean relations aimed at deepening partnership and strategic cooperation in a wide range of priority areas for both nations», Shoigu said in Pyongyang.
«I would like to express our appreciation to our Korean friends for their solidarity with Russia’s stance on all pressing international issues, in particular the situation in Ukraine».
According to Shoigu, «Russia highly values the current level of strategic relations between our countries and is committed to strengthening them».
It can be assumed that this visit continued a series of similar trips aimed at maintaining relations with Russia’s partners in light of Moscow’s dialogue with Washington and the possibility of changes in the strategic environment. Kim Jong Un reportedly reacted positively to the resumption of contacts between Russia and the United States, expressing confidence that these developments would not affect Pyongyang’s relations with Moscow. Judging by the outcome, the Russian representative did his best to dispel any doubts among his North Korean partners.
In this context, the question arises whether direct dialogue between Pyongyang and Washington could be resumed — especially since President Trump had previously indicated that he had a special relationship with Kim Jong Un. However, the situation has changed dramatically since the personal exchanges between the two leaders during Trump’s first term. The main issue that concerned Trump — the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the DPRK’s abandonment of nuclear weapons — has been definitively taken off the agenda by Pyongyang, which has concluded that Washington cannot be trusted.
«I am convinced that there are and will be absolutely no prospects for negotiations with the DPRK on denuclearization, no matter how they are packaged», said Russian Ambassador to the DPRK Alexander Matsegora. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made a similar statement last year, noting that the issue was no longer relevant. At best, there may be talks to reduce tensions on the Korean Peninsula, but the United States is unlikely to pursue them. Having been repeatedly misled by U.S. negotiators, the North Korean leadership is now relying on its own strength — backed by nuclear weapons — and the help of its allies, most notably Russia.
Shoigu and Kim also discussed decisions to deepen bilateral relations, although for understandable reasons not all the details were made public. It is clear, however, that the dialogue continues to develop. In January, DPRK Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui visited Moscow for three days. In February, a delegation from the Workers’ Party of Korea was in the Russian capital for talks with representatives of United Russia. In the same month, President Vladimir Putin received Li Hi Yong, secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, in the Kremlin.
With little fanfare, air service was restored between Vladivostok and Pyongyang. The resumption of regular rail service between the two countries remains on the agenda. Nevertheless, it is by rail that DPRK leader Kim Jong Un is likely to travel when he comes to Moscow in May this year. This trip will be very different from those of his father, Kim Jong Il, and especially his grandfather, Kim Il Sung. There are also plans to start regular train service from Vladivostok to the DPRK in May. Preparations are underway to build a new bridge across the Tumen River, linking the two banks and the two countries.
«We have a number of other potential bilateral projects in the works, both large and small. I think we’ll be able to talk about some of them in the near future», Alexander Matsegora said.
As for boosting bilateral trade, the Russian ambassador was hesitant, citing the need to gather more information. This is understandable: neither country is particularly eager to announce an expansion of economic ties. North Korea typically keeps such matters under wraps, while Russia is constrained by existing UN sanctions.
In short, the strategic dialogue between Russia and the DPRK is developing while relations between the DPRK and the United States remain at a standstill.