Pipeline linking two Koreas, Russia would not breach U.N. sanctions: officials

SEOUL, Sept. 5 (Yonhap) -- United Nations sanctions punishing North Korea for its missile and nuclear tests would not stand in the way of a potentially lucrative project to build a gas pipeline through the communist nation, South Korean officials said Monday, dismissing fresh doubts about the program that would ship Russian gas to the South.
Russia's proposal for a pipeline linking the country's Far East with the two Koreas has gained traction in recent weeks, after North Korean leader Kim Jong-il reportedly agreed to its construction during his summit talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Aug. 24.
Critics fear that North Korea will use the pipeline's raw materials and future gas handling charges to build weapons of mass destruction (WMD) instead.
North Korea is under multiple international and U.N. sanctions for its missile and nuclear tests conducted in 2006 and 2009. Under Resolution 1874, adopted by the U.N. Security Council in June 2009, the communist state has been subject to an overall arms embargo, financial sanctions and interdiction of cargo on the high seas to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons, missiles and other WMDs.
"The focus of the U.N. sanctions is on WMDs, so unless there's a direct link between the pipeline project and WMDs, we can't technically say that the project is a breach of U.N. sanctions," said a foreign ministry official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
"The U.N. sanctions do not apply to regular economic exchanges or humanitarian assistance or any project that contributes to peace on the Korean Peninsula," said another ministry official, also requesting anonymity. "There's no reason to bring up the U.N. sanctions as a reason for not pursuing the pipeline project."
The pipeline, if built, will boost exports of Siberian natural gas to South Korea -- one of the world's largest natural gas consumers -- and is expected to bring more than US$500 million a year in transit fees to the impoverished North, according to South Korean analysts.
The project has also raised hopes for an improvement in inter-Korean ties, which have reached their lowest point in decades following the North's deadly military attacks last year. Seoul blames Pyongyang for the March 2010 sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan and the artillery shelling of the front-line island of Yeonpyeong, which killed a total of 50 South Koreans.
Some analysts, however, say the pipeline would only give North Korea another tool to wield leverage over the South.
Meanwhile, officials from Russia's gas monopoly Gazprom may visit South Korea as early as next week to explore ways to build the pipeline, according to multiple government sources. The development comes after Konstantin Vnukov, Moscow's ambassador to Seoul, told Yonhap News Agency in an interview on Aug. 26 that he expects consultations between Gazprom and Korea Gas Corp., its South Korean counterpart, to "come soon."
Last week, Rep. Hong Joon-pyo, the chief of South Korea's ruling Grand National Party, said the two Koreas and Russia plan to meet in November to discuss the trilateral project.