MOSCOW, August 6. /TASS/. Pyongyang may soon lose hope for dialogue with Washington as the US has done nearly nothing to ease tensions, Director of the Russian Strategy for Asia Center of the Institute of Economics at Russia’s Academy of Sciences Georgy Toloraya told TASS on Monday.
"There is no much hope for an early conclusion of talks, let alone their success," he said, adding that he would not be surprised "if the parties returned to confrontation in a while, before the year ends."
According to the Russian expert, one of the reasons is that Pyongyang does not see Washington take any step in response to North Korea’s acts of goodwill. "North Korea has done a lot, which no one expected," Toloraya said. "It concerns the destruction of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site and some facilities at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station, the return of US military personnel’s remains, as well as the cessation of anti-US rhetoric in the North Korean media. At the same time, the United States has done nearly nothing," he noted.
"North Koreans must find contradictions between the head of state’s instructions and the steps taken by the State Department and Defense Department rather strange. Pyongyang may soon lose hope that it is possible to deal with the US at all," Toloraya said.
Mutual allegations
The Russian expert pointed to the degradation of the negotiating process. "The situation surrounding the denuclearization process and the very negotiating process between the US and North Korea has been deteriorating," he said.
According to Toloraya, Washington has been negative about the process. "Both parties accuse each other of violating obligations, enshrined in the declaration adopted at the Singapore meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un," he explained.
"Franky speaking, there are many people and forces in the US that seek to damage the process," Toloraya went on to say. "For instance, there have been some bogus stories about North Korea’s alleged missile and nuclear developments, while Pyongyang has not promised to put an end to them yet. The declaration contains no such obligations and the parties have not yet agreed that it must be done," the expert noted.
Trump-Kim meeting
A historic meeting between US President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un took place in Singapore on June 12. The parties signed a joint document, which particularly says that the US-North Korea summit "was an epochal event of great significance in overcoming decades of tensions and hostilities between the two countries and for the opening up of a new future."
The document adds that "President Trump and Chairman Kim Jong-un commit to implement the stipulations in this joint statement fully and expeditiously." According to the document, Pyongyang "commits to work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" in return for US security guarantees.
Sanctions pressure
In Toloraya’s opinion, the United States has been exerting pressure on other countries to establish a front against North Korea. "It particularly concerns other countries’ compliance with sanctions on Pyongyang," he said, adding that "the United States continues to not only been keep an eye on the situation but also come up with new restrictions, trying to establish a unified front and making other countries toughen their sanctions."
In September 2017, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution banning the issuance of work permits to North Koreans, textile imports from North Korea, the exports of natural gas and gas condensate to the country and the establishment of joint ventures involving North Korean entities. Besides, the resolution also restricted refined petroleum exports to North Korea.
Pressure on Russia
By imposing sanctions and making groundless accusations against Moscow, the US is trying to involve Russia in efforts aimed at exerting pressure on Pyongyang, Toloraya said, noting that Moscow had recently been accused of issuing work permits to North Korean citizens despite UN sanctions. "No facts are being presented and as far as I know, there actually are no facts. The Russian authorities may have issued work permits to North Korean laborers who are already working in Russia and have contracts signed before September 11, 2017," he stressed.
"We implemented the decisions made at the UN Security Council’s meeting in New York, and stopped accepting new laborers," he said. "Although there was an agreement that North Korean laborers would have the opportunity to continue working in Russia until 2019, many of them have already left the country for various reasons. In particular, their employers are afraid to extend their contracts and make new ones," the expert noted.
"Attempts to exert pressure on Russia are obvious, they are aimed at creating discord between Moscow and Pyongyang, as well as at damaging Russia-US relations," Toloraya said.
New accusations
On August 3, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley accused Russia of violating the United Nations Security Council’s decision by granting work permits to North Korean laborers.
The Wall Street Journal earlier wrote that "Russia is letting thousands of new North Korean laborers enter the country and issuing fresh work permitsactions US officials say potentially violate United Nations sanctions aimed at cutting cash flows to Pyongyang and pressing it to give up nuclear weapons."
The United States requested the UN Security Council to blacklist a North Korean banker residing in Russia, the Agrosoyuz commercial bank registered in Russia, a Chinese company and a North Korean organization, which had been already sanctioned by Washington.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stressed on August 3 that the issuance of work permits to North Korean laborers who had signed contracts before new sanctions against Pyongyang were introduced in September 2017, did not run counter to the UN Security Council resolution.