You're reading: Gazprom kicks off gas pipeline talks with North Korea

Three weeks after the Russian and North Korean leaders reached an agreement on the building of a gas pipeline running from Russia to the Korean peninsula, consultations on the project have begun.

The Gazprom press service reported that there was a working meeting held on Sept.15 in Moscow involving the company’s CEO Alexei Miller and North Korean Oil Minister Kim Hui Yong.

Issues involved in the practical organization of work on pipeline deliveries of natural gas to the peninsula were discussed at this meeting. Agreement was reached to set up a joint working group for the project’s implementation, as well as for working through other promising avenues of cooperation.

The attendees noted the importance of multilateral support for building the pipeline, including the soonest possible preparation and signing of an intergovernmental agreement on project-implementation issues. The meeting resulted in the signing of a memorandum of mutual understanding between Gazprom and the North Korean Oil Ministry.