North Korean Economy Watch

According to Voice of America:

A Russian official said Moscow and Pyongyang have agreed to discuss the creation of advanced development zones in Russia’s Far East and North Korea.

The latest project to be discussed between Russia and North Korea would call for a trilateral project, with South Korea’s participation, said Alexander Galushka, Russia’s minister for the development of the Russian Far East.

In an email sent to the VOA Korean news service, Galushka said Moscow and Pyongyang agreed to “discuss the creation of advanced development zones in the Russian Far East and on the territory of the DPRK with the participation of the Russian Federation, the DPRK and South Korea.”

Economic delegation

The agreement was reached during a visit by a North Korean economic delegation to Moscow in late February. The North Korean delegation was led by Ri Ryong Nam, Pyongyang’s Minister for Foreign Economic Affairs.

Ri and Galushka co-chair a commission tasked with promoting economic ties between Moscow and Pyongyang.

The move is an example of a series of ambitious economic projects recently launched by Moscow and Pyongyang in their efforts to enhance economic ties.

In November, the two sides expanded the Khasan-Rajin project, a project connecting the railways of Russia’s border town and the North Korean port, by conducting a test shipment of Russian coal from Russia to the South Korean port city of Pohang through the Rajin.

In October, the two countries launched a rare joint project that calls for Russia to overhaul North Korea’s railway system in return for access to the North’s mineral resources. The project involves reconstruction of more than 3,000 kilometers of railroads over 20 years.

Galushka said the railway project would pave the way for a significant increase in bilateral trade between Russia and North Korea.

Some analysts are skeptical that the project can be sufficiently financed. So far, Moscow is known to have attracted one domestic investor for the project.

Read the full story here:
Russia, North Korea Boost Economic Ties
Voice of America
Yonho Kim
2015-3-22

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 22nd, 2015 at 12:06 pm and is filed under Foreign direct investment, Russia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.