Category: North Korea

JRL NEWSWATCH: “Where Does the Russia-North Korea Relationship Stand?” – Council on Foreign Relations/ Scott A. Snyder

JRL NewsBlog, North Korea
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

“… Kim desperately needed to replace the narrative of weakness after failing to make a widely expected deal with the United States at the Hanoi summit with a narrative of strength, both domestically and internationally. Last week’s summit with Putin allowed Kim to show stature internationally and discuss alternatives to the U.S.-proposed big deal on denuclearization. But he failed to […]

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With North Korea, Russia Knows It Can Only Play Second Fiddle to China and US

China, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Simon Saradzhyan – April 25, 2019 – russiamatters.org/blog/north-korea-russia-knows-it-can-only-play-second-fiddle-china-and-us) This week’s summit between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un—the first between the Russian and North Korean leaders—has proved to be as underwhelming as expected. While the two spent twice as much time talking face-to-face as had been planned, they neither announced any major agreements nor appeared […]

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RUSSIALINK TRANSCRIPT: “[Putin] News conference following Russian-North Korean talks” – KremlinRu

Far East, Siberia, APEC, North Korea, Politics, Government, Protests, Elections
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

(Kremlin.ru – April 25, 2019 – en.kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/60370) Following his talks with Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Kim Jong-un, Vladimir Putin answered media questions. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, I suggest that we go straight to questions and answers. I will try to answer your questions. Go ahead, please. Question: Mr […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “‘These Are Our Friends’; Russians Push to Preserve North Korea Ties; Some Russian business owners and ethnic Koreans are braving U.S. ire to maintain business ties with Pyongyang” – Wall Street Journal/ Anatoly Kurmanaev, Thomas Grove, Ksenia Barakovskaya, Lyubov Barabashova, Ian Talley

Far East, Siberia, APEC, JRL NewsBlog, North Korea, United Nations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

“… some 13,000 North Korean workers [were] left in Russia by October …. Some Western diplomats view Moscow’s implementation of … sanctions as overly liberal. … allowing [Pyongyang] to continue earning foreign currency and sourcing vital supplies in Russia and undermining U.S. attempts to strong-arm the country into giving up [WMD]. … Russian customs data show North Korea imported about […]

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RUSSIALINK: “U.S. has no clear understanding of need to positively respond to Pyongyang’s steps on denuclearization – Russian Foreign Ministry” – Interfax

North Korea, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of U.S. Embassy Moscow, with Russian Foreign Ministry Building in Distance

MOSCOW. Jan 14 (Interfax) – Washington does not fully realize the need to positively respond to North Korea’s steps in the direction of denuclearization and normalization of relations, a Russian Foreign Ministry official said. “The way the South Korean administration is building its line – step by step, in parallel, by reciprocal steps – is a good example to the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S., Russia Clash at U.N. as Lavrov Calls for Easing of North Korea Sanctions” – Wall Street Journal/ Jessica Donati (Sept. 28, 2018)

JRL NewsBlog, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, United Nations, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of UN Building with Flags

“The Trump administration worked to move ahead on its top diplomatic priority – the denuclearization of North Korea – but ran head-on into opposition to its plans from Russia, which called for the easing of United Nations sanctions against Pyongyang. The proposal by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the U.N. Security Council ran directly counter to the U.S. demand […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Putin calls for int’l security guarantees for North Korea supported with involvement of nuclear powers” – Interfax

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

VLADIVOSTOK. Sept 12 (Interfax) – Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that nuclear powers should take part in the discussion of international security guarantees for North Korea. “What kind of guarantees could that be? International. We have such a format as six-nation talks. The international community can give such guarantees, including those supported with the involvement of nuclear powers in these […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia supports U.S. efforts on settlement on Korean Peninsula in contacts with N. Korea – Lavrov” – Interfax

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

MOSCOW. July 14 (Interfax) – Russia supports the efforts made by U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on settling the situation on the Korean Peninsula and supports them in its contacts with North Korea and other countries of the region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. “It has been a very deep crisis with very […]

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RUSSIALINK: “State Duma doesn’t expect instant results from U.S.-N. Korean summit, stands for six-party talks” – Interfax

North Korea, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian State Duma Building file photo

MOSCOW. June 12 (Interfax) – The meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is a historical event, but it would not give instant results, to that end negotiations should move to the six-party format, Alexei Chepa, the deputy chair of the State Duma International Affairs Committee, told Interfax on Tuesday. “It is a historical […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Pyongyang says Kim, Lavrov agree on Russia-N. Korea summit” – Interfax

North Korea
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

MOSCOW. June 1 (Interfax) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov agreed at their meeting on Pyongyang to hold a bilateral summit in 2018, the North Korean state-run news agency KCNA said in a statement on Friday. Kim “warmly welcomed the visit of Foreign Minister Lavrov and his party to the DPRK and had […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Differing approaches to Korea crisis may jeopardize N. Korea-U.S. summit – Kosachyov” – Interfax

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

MOSCOW. May 16 (Interfax) – The differing approaches of Washington and Pyongyang to the settlement process on the Korean Peninsula and the bilateral summit may jeopardize the very fact of the summit and its outcome, Federation Council Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Konstantin Kosachyov said on Facebook. “The problems that emerged shortly before the pivotal meeting between the U.S. and North […]

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Interfax: Russia starts sending North Korean labor migrants back home – ambassador in Pyongyang

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, North Korea
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

NEW YORK. Feb 7 (Interfax) – Russia has started sending North Korean labor migrants home consistent with the latest resolution of the UN Security Council, Russian Ambassador in Pyongyang Alexander Matsegora told the Russian press in New York. “That would affect the Russian economy, especially the Far East, rather seriously. […] Yet we are strictly and unwaveringly complying with the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Nuclear Dangers from North Korea: Managing the Risks to the U.S. and Russia” – RussiaMatters/ Joshua H. Pollack

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

“Among the most disturbing aspects of the North Korean nuclear problem today is the lack of a common perspective between Washington and Moscow. More than any other government, Russian authorities have been reluctant to acknowledge the emergence of a genuine nuclear and missile threat from North Korea to the United States. This perceptual gap is more than a mere irritant. […]

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Moscow Ponders Trump’s Fire and Fury

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – MAXIM TRUDOLYUBOV – August 11, 2017) Maxim Trudolyubov, Senior Fellow with the Kennan Institute and editor-at-large with Vedomosti, has been following Russian economy and politics since the late 1990s. He has served as an opinion page editor for Vedomosti and editor and correspondent for the newspaper Kapital. As North Korea’s nuclear missile program advances, U.S. […]

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The Key to North Korea Is Russia; Unfortunately, the idea of a grand bargain with Russia is less popular in Washington than ever before.

North Korea, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
North Korea Map and Flag, adapted from .gov image

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Leonid Bershidsky – May 18, 2017) Leonid Bershidsky is a Bloomberg View columnist. He was the founding editor of the Russian business daily Vedomosti and founded the opinion website Slon.ru. The idea of a grand bargain between the U.S. and Russia is less popular in Washington than ever before. And yet one of the biggest foreign […]

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NEWSWATCH: “Have we forgotten the Cold War? Nuclear threat more real than ever” – The Hill/ William Perry

JRL NewsBlog, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

“… relations between the United States and #Russia are as hostile as they were during the #ColdWar. Russia has dropped its long-term policy of ‘No First Use’ of #nuclear weapons and is rebuilding its nuclear arsenal. It is threatening its neighbors with these deadly weapons and indirectly threatening the U.S. Responding to this challenge, the U.S. has begun rebuilding its […]

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“Crises in the Second Nuclear Age” – Stephen J. Cimbala, Paul Bracken

Mideast, North Africa, Syria, Egypt, Libya, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, Nuclear, Missile Defense, Syria, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations, WMD Proliferation
Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

Subject: Crises in the Second Nuclear Age Date: Fri, 21 Apr 2017 From: STEPHEN CIMBALA <sjc2@psu.edu> Crises in the Second Nuclear Age By Stephen J. Cimbala and Paul Bracken Stephen J. Cimbala is Professor of Political Science at Penn State Brandywine. Paul Bracken is Professor of Management and Professor of Political Science at Yale University. Nuclear weapons coincided with the […]

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RIA Novosti: Putin Signs Decree to Implement Sanctions Against North Korea

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, WMD Proliferation
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MOSCOW, December 2 (RIA Novosti) ­ Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree to implement UN Security Council sanctions against North Korea, the government’s legal information website said Monday. All North Korean ships must now consent to an inspection before being allowed to enter a Russian port. Russian state and commercial organizations are also forbidden from helping North Korea […]

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The Korean factor in Moscow’s foreign policy

North Korea, South Korea
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(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrei Ilyashenko, special to RBTH – November 17, 2013) The author is a political analyst for the Voice of Russia Radio. Russia’s relations with South and North Korean are critical to the country’s stability and interests. Vladimir Putin had two reasons to visit Seoul on November 12 and 13: security and security. And […]

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Putin Builds North Korea Rail to Circumvent Suez Canal

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Far East, Siberia, APEC, Mideast, North Africa, Syria, Egypt, Libya, North Korea, Transportation
North Korea Map and Flag

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Ekaterina Shatalova and Nicholas Brautlecht – October 15, 2013) Vladimir Putin is inching closer to his goal of turning Russia into a major transit route for trade between eastern Asia and Europe by prying open North Korea, a nuclear-capable dictatorship isolated for half a century. Russia last month completed the first land link that North Korea’s […]

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G8 leaders tackle taxes, Syria, North Korea and terrorism

Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Foreign Policy, Security, Visas, Mideast, North Africa, Syria, Egypt, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Terrorism
File Photo of G8 Heads of State Outdoors in 2013

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Yuri Paniyev, special to RBTH – June 18, 2013) With the G8 summit in full swing in Northern Ireland, the world’s leaders try to tackle financial and international challenges including tax evasion, the Middle East stand-off, the Syrian crisis and the North Korea nuclear problem. G8 leaders began their two-day summit at the […]

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Russian pundits: Still calm about Korea?

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

(Russia Beyond the Headlines –  www.rbth.ru – Ekaterina Zabrovskaya, Yelena Kim, RBTH – April 10, 2013) Regardles of the fact that Russian pundits are concerned by growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, most argue that a full-scale war will not break out. Although the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs has advised diplomatic missions to leave the country by April […]

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Russia Seen as Powerless to Influence Pyongyang

North Korea
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(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jonathan Earle – April 10, 2013) The White House has urged Moscow to do more to restrain saber-rattling North Korea, but despite historically strong ties with its nuclear-armed neighbor, Russia does not have special influence that could help defuse growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, experts said Tuesday. “Russia doesn’t have any exclusive ways to […]

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Lavrov accuses N. Korea of blatantly violating UN Security Council resolutions

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 10, 2013) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused North Korea of blatantly violating a UN Security Council resolution and warned that Moscow will consistently seek to calm the situation down. “Certainly, it is unacceptable when a state – in this particular case the DPRK, a UN member – openly and blatantly violates a UN Security […]

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The Dangers of the Korean Crisis

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

(RIA Novosti – April 9, 2013 – Fyodor Lukyanov) Fyodor Lukyanov is Editor-in-Chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal, authoritative source of expertise on Russian foreign policy and global developments. The world is once again looking toward the Korean Peninsula with apprehension, though at this point it should be used to Pyongyang’s routine threats to wipe its enemies off […]

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Russia, US: Not the time to be throwing stones

Assassinations, Beatings, Threats, North Korea, Syria, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
File Photo of Vladimir Putin Leaning Towards Barack Hussein Obama With Flags Behind Them

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Yevgeny Shestakov, special to RBTH – April 9, 2013) Yevgeny Shestakov is international politics editor at Rossiyskaya Gazeta. International politics analyst Yevgeny Shestakov considers Russia and the U.S. should not resolve their differences via international conflicts like the Syria crisis. Events in civil war-torn Syria have demonstrated the lamentable inability of Russia and […]

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Russians troubled by North Korea’s belligerent rhetoric and plans – poll

North Korea
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(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 9, 2013) Russian citizens recently interviewed by the Levada Center said they now have a better opinion of South Korea than North Korea, expressing concern over Pyongyang’s recent belligerent rhetoric and plans. Forty-nine percent of respondents to the March survey said they had a positive attitude toward North Korea, and 26% spoke of the country negatively. […]

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Korean War Unlikely, But Risks for Russia Serious

North Korea
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(RIA Novosti – Alexey Eremenko – MOSCOW, April 9, 2013) ­ Radioactive fallout from South Korean nuclear plants blown up by enemy saboteurs could be, for Russia, the worst consequence of a possible Korean war ­ should one happen, Russian analysts said. “You could have five or six Chernobyls take place over a relatively small territory,” said Alexander Zhebin, who heads […]

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North Korea views its nuclear potential as security guarantee – diplomat

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

(Interfax – MOSCOW, April 8, 2013) North Korea does not want to become another target for the U.S. after Syria and therefore it needs reliable security guarantees, a North Korean diplomatic source said in reply to a question from Interfax concerning reasons for Pyongyang’s increasingly militant rhetoric in relation to the U.S. and South Korea of late. “Washington has often […]

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Tensions on the Korean peninsula bring Russia and China closer

China, North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation, WMD Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

(Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – Andrei Ilyashenko, special to RBTH – April 1, 2013) Andrei Ilyashenko is a columnist on the Middle East issues for several Russian media and military magazines. For Moscow and Beijing the consequences of North Korea’s posturing in recent months could turn into a major security issue. North Korean propagandists recently posted a YouTube […]

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U.S. Awaits Russian Response to Delaying Missile Shield

North Korea, Nuclear, Missile Defense
Missile Defense Control Room file photo

(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Gopal Ratnam & Stepan Kravchenko – March 18, 2013) The Obama administration’s decision to slow work on missile defenses in Eastern Europe has raised hopes of arms control advocates that Russia might respond by agreeing to renewed talks on reducing both nations’ nuclear arsenals. U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said March 15 that the Pentagon will […]

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North Korea seeks recognition of its de facto nuclear status – expert

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

MOSCOW. Feb 18 (Interfax) – If South Korean reports on North Korean preparations for the next nuclear test are correct, this would indicate that North Korea want to strike a deal with the United States as an equal and receive a nuclear status similar to that of India, head of the Korean Studies Center at the Russian Academy of Sciences […]

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U.S. State Dept slammed for looking into ‘routine matters’ of Russian politics

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
Russian Foreign Ministry Building Tower file photo

MOSCOW. Feb 14 (Interfax) – A Russian deputy foreign minister has slammed the U.S. State Department for what he argued is too much attention to “routine matters” in Russia’s foreign policy. “It’s surprising that routine matters should be attracting such close attention, including public attention,” Sergei Ryabkov told Interfax on Thursday in comments on a statement by a State Department […]

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DPRK nuclear tests may prompt other states to quit non-proliferation regime – expert

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

MOSCOW. Feb 12 (Interfax) – North Korean nuclear tests endanger regional and global security, Carnegie Moscow Center Nuclear Non-Proliferation Program Coordinator Pyotr Topychkanov said. “If Japan and South Korea obtain convincing evidence to support the development of nuclear weapons in North Korea, violations of the non-proliferation regime may start in the region. For instance, Japan may be prompted to acquire […]

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Reflecting on 2012: A year in Moscow as the U.S. Ambassador

Afghanistan, Economy, Business, Investment, Trade, Iran, North Korea, Terrorism, United States, U.S.-Russian Relations
Ambassador Michael McFaul file photo

(Ambassador Michael McFaul – Russia Beyond the Headlines – www.rbth.ru – February 8, 2013 – Michael Mcfaul is the U.S. Ambassador in Russia) A year ago, I arrived in Moscow to represent my country as the U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation. This is a good moment to reflect on the state of U.S.-Russian relations and my role in developing […]

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Russia suggests starting talks on peace, security on Korean Peninsula

North Korea
North Korea Map and Flag

MOSCOW. Feb 6 (Interfax) – Negotiations on peace and security could help build confidence between North Korea and the other participants in the six-party talks on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Russian Ambassador to Pyongyang Alexander Timonin said. “As follows from the North Korean Foreign Ministry’s and the State Defense Committee’s recent statements, Pyongyang also does not object to […]

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North Korean ‘political survival champs’ wish to swap nuke program for security guarantees – Russian expert

North Korea, Nuclear Proliferation
North Korea Map and Flag

(Interfax – January 24, 2013) The North Korean National Defense Commission said on Thursday that North Korea could carry on satellite launches and nuclear tests. This means to retaliate against the United States and indicates that Pyongyang intends to exchange nuclear program concessions for security guarantees from Washington, Russian State Duma International Affairs Committee First Deputy Chairman, political expert Vyacheslav […]

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