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Forum Efforts Help to Bolster Korea-Russia Cooperation

The 11th Korea-Russia Forum, held at the Hotel Ambassador in St. Petersburg (May 31-June 1), generated considerable attention since this year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Russia. Moreover, the gathering served as an opportunity for the two sides to discuss the sinking of the Korean naval vessel, the Cheonan.



In his opening remarks, Kim Sung-yup, Vice President of the Korea Foundation, spoke highly of the rapid development of Korea-Russia relations in various fields, over the past two decades. He especially expressed his expectations for Russia, as a member of the Six-Party Talks, to play a prominent role in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue as well as the recent Cheonan incident, so that the peace and stability of Northeast Asia can be maintained. Thereafter, A.N. Panov, Rector of the Diplomatic Academy of Russia, agreed on the importance of close cooperation between the two countries to assure the security of Northeast Asia and the Korean Peninsula, while A.N. Borodavkin, Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia, expressed his condolences for the unfortunate victims of the Cheonan incident. However, he reiterated a basic stance of Russia’s Foreign Ministry that the Cheonan incident should not interfere with proceedings of the Six-Party Talks.

Discussion of Cheonan Incident
In their opening remarks, Vice President Kim Sung-yup and Rector Panov of the Diplomatic Academy reflected on how the Korea-Russia Forum had contributed to the development of bilateral relations, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between the two countries, along with expressing their expectations for this year’s gathering to again play a positive role in the efforts to realize a strategic and cooperative partnership. Along with emphasizing that the Six-Party Talks have served as an efficient mechanism to prevent an escalation of tension in Northeast Asia, where the Cold-War confrontation still remains, Deputy Foreign Minister Borodavkin called for taking a first step toward the formation of a Northeast Asian peace regime by overcoming the crisis situation related to the sinking of the Cheonan. In his keynote remarks, Chairman Kang Man-soo called on Russia to realize the vast potential for joint development of natural resources with Korea, through a strengthening of the strategic partnership between Korea and Russia. He also emphasized that Korea’s open economy and well-developed infrastructure in East Asia could serve as a valuable foothold for Russia’s advancement into the East Asian region.

Strategic Partnership
For the initial discussion session, based on a theme of “Russia-Korea Strategic Partnership in the 21st Century,” opening remarks were presented by Professor Kulmatov, The First Deputy Director, Diplomatic Academy and Dr. Toloraya, Vice-President of the Fund “Unity in the name of Russia” for the Russian side, and Kim Seok-hwan Vice President, Jueseong University and Professor Ko Jae-nam Director-General, Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security for the Korean side. Following an overview of the two decades of Korea-Russia relations, the participants discussed regional security issues, including a proposed multilateral security system for Northeast Asia and North Korea-related issues. Especially, much attention was focused on Russia’s stance
toward the Cheonan incident and the Seoul government’s investigation of the matter.
Dr. Tolorya expressed concern that tension on the Korean Peninsula, due to the Cheonan incident, might develop into a military conflict, while North Korea would be forced to rely more on China and focus on its nuclear development program if U.N. sanctions are imposed against the North. Ambassador Ivashentsov also noted that sanctions against North Korea might worsen the situation, and thus called for efforts to normalize relations through inter-Korean talks, to be undertaken concurrently with the proceedings to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue. Chairman Kang Mansoo and the Korean participants offered a detailed explanation about the Korean government’s countermeasures, based on the results of an international investigation of the Cheonan’s sinking, and the efforts to garner support from the global community to impose sanctions against the North.

Economic Cooperation
The second session focused on a theme of “Achievements and Problems of Russia-Korea Economic Cooperat ion,” which was led by Ambassador Ivashentsov and V. Zapevalov, of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Jeong Yeo-cheon, Vice President, Korea Institute for International Economic Policy and Choi Kyung Suk, President, LGERA Production Team. The participants paid close attention to the example of LGE in Russia that has contracted with local manufacturers for a steady supply of parts, along with making efforts to enhance its corporate image by participating in community activities, such as a blood donation campaign, which have contributed to its successful operations in Russia.
The Korean participants asked a number of questions of Ambassador Ivashentsov, after he emphasized the importance of East Asia in Russia’s energy policy. Various proposals for joint cooperation in energy-related projects were discussed in considerable detail by both sides. It should also be noted that discussion of possible economic cooperation between the region of St. Petersburg and Korea was a meaningful achievement of the forum event. In large part, Korean business investment has been concentrated around Moscow thus far. But Hyundai Motor Company’s investment in St. Petersburg has served to heighten Korea’s economic profile in this region.

Broadened Relations
For the session on “Development of Economic Links between the Far Eastern Region of the Russian Federation and the Two Koreas,” Dr. Ryu Ji-chul, Senior Fellow, Korea Energy Economics Institute(KEEI) and Dr. Ra Hee-seung, Director General, Korea Railroad Research Institute discussed two way cooperation on energy and railway development, respectively. For the Russian side, its speakers were Zapesotsky, Rector of The St.Peterburg’s University of Trade union and Prokhorenko, Chairman, Committee of Foreign Relations of the St.Peterburg Adminiseration. Unfortunately, it was not possible to extensively discuss the development of proposed energy projects and railway transport in the Russian Far East. However, Rector Zapesotsky’s presentation on the relationship between traditional values and the economic development of Korea provided the Korean participants with an insightful perspective.

For the “Russian-Korean Interaction in the Spheres of Culture, Education and Media” session, presentations were made by Lee Se-ung, Board Chairman, Seoul Cyber University, Seoul Arts Center and Kim Hak-joon, Adviser, Dong-A Ilbo, along with Ambassador Raikov, Professor Kolotov and Chen Valery, Chief Editor of the newspaper “Russian Koreans”. The most widely discussed issue involved the Korean media’s tendency to report on “skinheads” in Russia, who are associated with hate crimes. Some of the Russian participants pointed out that the Korean media showed a tendency to focus on Russia’s negative aspects. While seeking to explain that this mainly resulted from a misunderstanding, Advisor Kim Hak-joon called on the two countries to develop a better understanding and mutual trust of each other, over the long term. Chairman Lee Seung described the current status of cultural exchange between Korea and Russia, in addition to proposing ways to expand exchange activities in order to develop closer relations.
Ambassador Raikov mentioned various problem areas in the current efforts to promote educational exchange between the two countries, which led to active discussion between the two sides.
The recent Korea-Russia Forum served as an occasion to confirm the notable progress and various difficulties in the two-decade relations between Korea and Russia. Most importantly, the forum participants expressed great confidence in the ability of the two sides to benefit greatly from their cooperative relations.

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