Безопасность Корейского полуострова и роль российско-корейского сотрудничества в его обеспечении

Abstract

Korean peninsula situation, including nuclear problem, remains a challenge for Russian security, therefore Moscow is intended to deepen cooperation on these issues with all the parties involved. Russia’s relations with ROK are aimed at strategic partnership, but what are the limits of cooperation on Korean security issues? Experts in Russia are not fully satisfied with Seoul’s current policy vis-a-vis North Korea, seeing it as one of the factors which brought the diplomatic process on Korean denuclearization to a standstill, North Korean leaders seem to fear that real goal of Lee Myong Bak’s administration is the change of regime in the North and its absorption. Russia sees many dangers in such a scenario and would like to avoid it. Russian experts put forward the need of taking into consideration the lawful interests of DPRK, sees the possibility of its collapse as remote and suggests diplomatic process of finding a compromise with the current North Korean leadership on a new system of security preservation in Korea, which is a pre-requisite of North Korean denuclearization in not so close future. Russia needs more understanding on support of ROK on such a strategy.