Stephan Haggard Comments On Russia-N. Korea Joint Military Exercises
Russia Announces Joint Military Exercises With N. Korea
09/13/2011
Aron Lam,
The Epoch Times
Russia and North Korea will hold joint naval exercises in 2012—their first, Russia’s military said on Tuesday. The announcement follows on the heels of a recent summit between the nations, indicating that the two may be seeking a closer partnership.
On Tuesday, Russian Lieutenant Colonel Igor Muginov told Russian media that the exercises will happen next year and focus on search and rescue operations, but did not provide any further details, according to Voice of America. So far, there have been no official reactions from the U.S., South Korea, or Japan to the announcement.
North Korea expert and author Professor Stephan Haggard of University of California, was somewhat surprised and very critical of the planned operations, calling them “incredibly retrograde” and said that they “appear to provide support to North Korea in an unhelpful way” in an email to The Epoch Times.
Haggard does not feel that this move by Russia will make it easier to get the stalled Six Party talks on North Koreas nuclear weapons program—between the United States, Russia, Japan, China, and the two Koreas—online again.
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Stephan Haggard can provide commentary on current developments in the Asia-Pacific, including particularly Korea, and on the politics of economic reform and globalization.
Visit Stephan Haggard and Marcus Noland's Blog on North Korea.
