RF-DPRK intergovernmental commission may meet mid-2011 - interview

PYONGYANG, February 24 (Itar-Tass) - The Russia - North Korean
intergovernmental commission on trade, economic, scientific and technical cooperation "may be organised in the middle of this year," the DPRK's Minister of Foreign Trade Ri Ryong Nam said in an exclusive interview to Itar-Tass as he returned home from Moscow.
He visited Russia at the invitation of Minister of Regional
Development Viktor Basargin, who - together with Ri Ryong Nam - co-chairs the intergovernmental commission.
Over the negotiations, the sides "confirmed their aspiration to
strengthen the friendly relations by developing trade and economic
cooperation in accordance with the interests of the two countries'
peoples," Ri Ryong Nam said. With this in mind, Russia and the DPRK "have reached an agreement to organise the fifth meeting of the
intergovernmental commission soon."
The sides had decided to restore business contacts, the minister said, and "to speed up the implementation of the current projects."
First of all, modernisation of the railway between Russia's border
station Khasan and the sea port Rachin in North-East of the DPRK, and
construction of a container terminal in that port. The projects are parts of the large-scale plan to unite the Trans-Siberia route with Trans-Korean railway. When finished, it will reduce delivery time for cargos from the Asian-Pacific Region to Europe.
"North Korean workers' involvement in logging /in the Amur Region and the Khabarovsk Territory/ and construction" has become a traditional trend of cooperation between Russia and the DPRK, Ri Ryong Nam said. This cooperation is "mutually advantageous."
Itar-Tass asked him to comment on the trade turnover between the two countries.
Over the past year, it "more than doubled," he replied.
The past, fourth, meeting of the Russia-DPRK intergovernmental
commission took place in March of 2007.