Russia and the DPRK-niche Diplomacy?

Russia and the DPRK-niche Diplomacy?

Speaker: Kuhrt, N.

Date: 9 August 2018

Speaker Session Preview

SMA hosted a speaker session presented by Dr. Natasha Kuhrt (King’s College, London) as a part of its SMA INDOPACOM Speaker Series. Dr. Kuhrt discussed Russia’s pivot towards a North Korea-focused Asia policy in response both to the increasing importance of the Asia-Pacific region and to the US’s pivot towards the region. She explained that Russia is highly invested in multilateral talks, strongly resists the notion of any settlement on the Korean Peninsula issues without its involvement, and is opposed to the US leading the negotiations. She also discussed Russia’s interests in and actions towards North Korea, as well as its desire to gain a more significant role in the region by taking away some of China’s influence. Dr. Kuhrt concluded by discussing some of Russia’s ongoing projects in North Korea, including modernizing Soviet-era facilities, creating a pipeline to benefit Pyongyang, and other economically-motivated activities.

Speaker Session Audio File

Download Dr. Kuhrt’s biography and slide