Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement and answers to media questions at a news conference following his visit to North Korea, Pyongyang, October 19, 2023

Good afternoon,

We are visiting the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in accordance with the agreement reached by President of Russia Vladimir Putin and Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the DPRK, Kim Jong-un, at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on September 13, 2023. Our visit is timed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations, marked on October 12 this year. During the visit, we have had constructive discussions on the progress made in implementing the agreements reached at the Vostochny Cosmodrome.

North Korea is Russia’s close neighbour and long-standing partner. We are unanimous in our belief that progressive enhancement of bilateral relations meets the interests of both states and contributes to the strengthening of peace and security in Northeast Asia. The advancement of our relations with China serves the same purpose.

Comrade Minister and I have discussed the opportunities for intensifying political dialogue and resuming fully-fledged exchanges, including those between the foreign ministries, as the countries deal with the consequences of the pandemic and lift the restrictions it entailed. We believe that the plan of inter-ministerial exchanges for 2024-2025, which we have just signed, will contribute to this.

We have talked a lot about the prospects for our trade and economic interaction. In accordance with our leaders’ decision, the countries will intensify specific aspects of practical cooperation. To this end, the tenth meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation is scheduled to be convened in November.

We have considered the key issues on the regional and global agendas, focusing on the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Like our North Korean friends, we are seriously concerned about the United States, Japan and South Korea’s growing military activity in the region, as well as about Washington’s policy aimed at transferring parts of its strategic infrastructure, including nuclear components, to the region. In contrast with this unconstructive and dangerous policy, we are insisting on the need for de-escalation and the inadmissibility of inflaming tensions in the region. We are pursuing this line together with North Korea and China.

We are striving to propose constructive alternatives to the escalation of tensions here. We advocate the establishment of a regular negotiation process on security issues on the Korean Peninsula without any preconditions. It is our shared interest to ensure peace and stability in Northeast Asia on the basis of respect for each party’s security interests and equitable agreements.

We also talked about the problems in the Asia-Pacific region, where the United States and its allies are promoting bloc-based formats and trying to move NATO infrastructure into the region under the guise of some Indo-Pacific strategies. Those are matters of serious concern as well. Like our North Korean friends, we advocate the establishment of reliable mechanisms to ensure equal and indivisible security in the region through non-bloc approaches. This is very important. The principle of mutual respect and consideration for each other’s interests is fundamental. We agreed to continue coordinating our actions at the UN and other multilateral platforms.

We reaffirmed our appreciation of Pyongyang’s stance on the developments in and around Ukraine. Our partners reaffirmed their principled support for the Russian Federation’s steps to repel the aggression unleashed against us by the US-led Western group, which is using Ukraine as a tool.

I believe that the exchange of opinions has been useful. We will continue to coordinate our actions in all areas, including, above all, the economy. We are greatly interested in considerably boosting trade and economic exchanges, as well as our political coordination based on the plan that we have just signed.

Question: Did you discuss the schedule of top-level and high-level contacts in Pyongyang?

Sergey Lavrov: A top-level contact took place a month ago, and a high-level contact has taken place today.  I am confident that they will continue.

Question: An attempt to organise talks between Israel and Palestine has failed in Amman. Are there any real mechanisms capable of quickly stopping the bloodshed?

Sergey Lavrov: A UN Security Council resolution, urging all sides to immediately cease any hostilities and violent actions and to address humanitarian concerns in the context of the humanitarian disaster facing the Gaza Strip and the millions of people living there, could become a real mechanism. Unfortunately, this resolution was not approved. I am not sure whether a pause would be declared and humanitarian issues addressed if this resolution were passed. But even a call for common sense has failed. The United States vetoed and blocked it.

Speaking of prospects, I assume that the countries concerned will continue their consultations. Egypt is displaying initiative. All of us would very much like to see a de-escalation of the situation in the Gaza Strip. Upcoming contacts, due to take place in the next few days, will show whether these expectations are realistic.

Question: A month ago, President Vladimir Putin met with leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Kim Jong-un in Russia. The world, especially Western countries, paid close attention to that meeting. President Putin has agreed to visit the DPRK. Why is the West scared of our friendship?

Sergey Lavrov: Why are you asking me?

I can only express a general opinion about the West’s actions, not only regarding our ties with North Korea but also regarding any part of the world. The West, primarily the United States, which subdued the West long ago, believes that it has the right to tell everyone what they must do, who they can meet and reach agreements with, and who must comply with bans. The United States is constantly dictating: you must do this, you must do that. President Putin has pointed this out on numerous occasions. Who must do what?

There is only one universal charter in the world, the UN Charter, which says that the organisation is based on the principle of sovereign equality of states. The United States has not complied with this inviolable fundamental rule in a single conflict or crisis since that vital international legal document came into effect.

Instead, it demands that everyone comply with its “rules,” which have never been published and which nobody has seen. This instinctive striving for hegemony does not help settle problems but is only pushing them into a dead-end.

A look at the history of reckless US ventures around the world, notably in Southeast Asia, Afghanistan and the Middle East, shows that none of them was successful or helped normalise the situation. On the contrary, this has planted the seeds that are producing dangerous and grim crops.

Question: The missile strike on the hospital in Gaza has provoked a wave of anti-Israel rallies in the Islamic world. Can the situation around the Palestinian-Israeli conflict be controlled? Do you think this conflict could grow into a global conflagration involving the United States and Iran? Did you discuss these risks during your meetings in Beijing and Pyongyang?

Sergey Lavrov: With regard to Gaza, there is a serious risk of that crisis growing into a regional conflict.

I have already said that the United States vetoed the resolution that called for an end to the hostilities and for humanitarian issues to be addressed. By doing this, Washington has shown that it is not ready to encourage a truce or a ceasefire. This may mean that it thinks the conflict could proliferate.

I cannot say anything about their goals. Attempts have been made to put the blame on Iran. We regard them as incendiary, especially since the Iranian authorities have taken a responsible and balanced stand and have called for preventing the conflict from spreading throughout the region, to neighbouring states. We will advocate this approach in our contacts with our Palestinian and other Arab colleagues, as well as with the Israelis.

Question: Seoul expects confrontation between blocs to continue gaining momentum in the region and become even more pronounced than during the Cold War. Do you agree with this statement? What are the chances of this conflict moving into a hot phase? What is Russia doing to prevent this?

Sergey Lavrov: Regarding the statements coming from Seoul, the Republic of Korea can be viewed as one of the factors explaining why tension has been on the rise here. I have already mentioned the initiative to create the US-South Korea-Japan trilateral alliance in order to expand their military potential, including its nuclear components. This creates tension.

Instead of sounding the alarm in this connection, our South Korean colleagues should have changed their plans and adopted a different position, including on the question of resuming talks on peace and security in Northeast Asia. There was a negotiating process on this issue. And it was not our initiative, or China’s, or DPRK’s, to suspend these talks. The DPRK continued facing demands to make unilateral concessions during these talks, which was unrealistic. The situation we are witnessing today is even more alarming. However, as Comrade Minister and I have discussed today, Russia and the DPRK, as well as China, all stand for dialogue and resuming talks without any preconditions. I think that this position will resonate with Southeast Asia as a whole and will benefit from wide-reaching support.

Question: This is not your first visit to Pyongyang. What will you remember from this trip to the DPRK? Would you recommend that our tourists spend their vacations in North Korea?

Sergey Lavrov: Yes, I would.

Question: Have you discussed economic cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang? What are the sectors in which our countries can and will undertake joint projects?

Sergey Lavrov: I have already mentioned that the Intergovernmental Commission for Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation is scheduled to hold its 10th regular meeting next month. It will review all the tracks in keeping with the principled approaches outlined by our leaders at the Vostochny Cosmodrome.

The co-chairs of the Intergovernmental Commission had a meeting in Moscow in the follow-up to the summit to outline specific tracks and topics for the commission’s plenary meeting. This includes geological surveys, planning energy supplies and delivering other goods our friends in the DPRK need. I think that this meeting will show the path forward in terms of our economic cooperation.

Question: Türkiye has come out with an initiative to create a system of guarantor countries for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in order to promote a peaceful settlement.

Would this be effective? Are there any plans to contact Ankara on this matter any time soon? Is Russia ready to act as a guarantor as part of this initiative and on what conditions?

Sergey Lavrov: We are ready to discuss any constructive proposals. I heard about this initiative just the other day. It is clearly designed to achieve de-escalation and bring the situation back to normal.

We would like our friends in Türkiye to tell us what they mean exactly, and have remained in touch with them on this and other matters. Let me remind you that there used to be a mechanism for ensuring a sustained negotiating effort – there used to be the Quartet of International Mediators, formed by Russia, the United States, the United Nations, and the European Union.

However, the Americans brought the Quartet’s work to a halt over the past years, as President of Russia Vladimir Putin has said on multiple occasions. They stopped working within the Quartet’s framework and tried to monopolise the negotiating process by reducing it to providing insignificant economic services and assistance to the Palestinians in exchange for their agreement to give up on creating the State of Palestine, despite the requirements set forth in UN Security Council resolutions. This was a sad experiment, and we do not want it to be repeated.

Russia wants all approaches to be based on the balance of interests among the parties involved instead of trying to impose someone’s interests at the expense of others. I believe that the Turkish initiative seeks to ensure this balance. We stand ready to cooperate on reviewing it.