Korea, Russia Agree on Strategic Partnership

President Lee and his Russian counterpart hold talks on Sept. 10

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreed to upgrade the two nations’ strategic partnership during talks on Sept. 10 in Yaroslavl. The two leaders exchanged their view on matters of mutual concern, including Korea’s cooperation in Russia’s natural gas, energy and other resources industries on top of the modernization of the Russian economy and the development of far eastern Siberia before attending the Global Policy Forum. President Lee made a positive assessment of relations between the two counties, saying that they have closely cooperated and furthered their ties in economic fields as well as in international issues in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Kim Hee-jung said. In return, President Medvedev echoed Lee’s view. As to the importation of natural gas from Russia, the two agreed to determine how to import it by November when they will attend the G20 Seoul Summit, the spokesperson said. The two leaders also touched on geopolitical matters regarding the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia. The two agreed that bilateral cooperation for the development of far eastern Siberia and the modernization of the Russian Economy will be important and successful endeavors for both countries. Lee emphasized that the denuclearization of North Korea is essential for peace in the region and for the stability of Northeast Asia. Lee and Medvedev agreed to closely cooperate to help denuclearize North Korea and redouble their efforts to end Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs.
Earlier in the day, President Lee expressed his views on North Korea and inter-Korean relations in an interview with Russia’s state-run broadcast outlet 24-TV. In the interview, aired in Russia on Sept. 10, Lee said he hopes to build another inter-Korean industrial complex like the Gaeseong Industrial Park, though the possibility of it depends wholly on Pyongyang’s attitude. He added that Seoul wants to normalize inter-Korean relations, and the international community is showing a lot of interest in helping South Korea in that regard, though it may take time.
Later in the day, Lee delivered a speech at the Global Policy Forum, led by Russian President Medvedev. Forum participants included former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, former President of India A.P.J. Adbul Kalam and former South African president Thabo Mbeki.
In his speech, President Lee proposed his vision of democracy backed by social and economic development and IT technology in the 21st century. By introducing his
“fair society” campaign, he hopes to encourage a moral social infrastructure to make Korea an advanced country. He also stressed the importance of upgrading Korea-Russia ties in order to prevent terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of massive destruction in the world. President Lee also held summit talks with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and met former Japanese Prime Minister Hatoyama in Yaroslavl.
LEE-PUTIN MEETING ― Korean President Lee held talks with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Sept. 9 and the two took up such matters of mutual concern as inter-Korean relationships and Korean-Russian ties. Lee and Putin shared the view that an early resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue was crucial for peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula as well as Northeast Asia, Cheong Wa Dae said.
During their meeting, Lee and Putin agreed to work closely during the international talks on the denuclearization North Korea going forward.

Top Auditor Tapped as Prime Minister
President Lee Myung-bak nominated Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) Kim Hwang-sik, a former Supreme Court justice, as the prime minister charged with running state affairs for the second half of President Lee’s tenure, Cheong Wa Dae said. President Lee chose Kim, judging that he is the right person to follow up on Lee’s fair society campaign, the president’s chief of staff Yim Tae-hee said. The National Assembly is expected to hold a confirmation hearing on the prime minister nominee soon. Kim, a native of Jangseong, Jeollanam-do, will become the first prime minister from the southwestern province since the establishment of the Republic of Korea in 1948. The 62-year-old former Supreme Court justice has been serving as the chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) since July 2008. Initially, the opposition Democratic Party affirmatively reacted to Kim’s nomination as the prime minister to replace ex-prime minister Chung Un-chan, who resigned over a controversy surrounding the construction of Sejong City, the new administrative town, in Yeongi, Chungcheongnam-do.
President Lee conducted a Cabinet reshuffle on Aug. 8, naming former governor Kim Tae-ho as prime minister and seven ministers. But prime minister-nominee Kim withdrew after the National Assembly disputed their ethical qualifications during their confirmation hearings. nw

President Lee Myung-bak shakes hands with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev prior to their talks in Yaroslavl on Sept. 10.

President Lee holds summit talks with Russian President Medvedev.

Prime Minister-designate Kim Hwang-sik.