Lee Myung-bak told reporters after his meeting with Dmitry Medvedev in the Kremlin: "We agreed to seek the means of implementing various projects, including supplies of Russian natural gas to the Korean peninsula, and the linking of the Trans-Korean rail line with the Trans-Siberian."
Lee's office issued a statement saying: "Korea Gas Corp. and Gazprom will soon start a joint study on the construction of a Russian-South Korean natural gas pipeline passing through North Korea."
South Korean news agency Yonhap said that under the plans, the pipeline will meet around 20% of South Korea's gas needs.
A joint statement released after the talks said: "The sides, acknowledging the importance to the international transport and logistics market of the project to link the Trans-Korean rail line with the Trans-Siberian railroad, including the reconstruction of the Khasan-Rajin line, and expressing their confidence that the project will boost the development of Far East and Siberian regions, decided to continue cooperation in the project to link the rail networks."
The 55-km Khasan-Rajin section will link Russia's Trans-Siberian railroad to the North Korean port city of Rajin.
The statement also said the leaders had agreed on a new format for strategic dialogue.
"A new agreement was reached on setting up a new channel of consultations on issues of foreign policy and security - strategic dialogue on the level of first deputy foreign ministers," the statement said.
From now on, deputy ministers from the two countries will hold regular talks focusing on defense, the statement said.
After the meeting, government ministers from both countries signed a total of 13 memorandums of understanding on issues ranging from information technology to investment and energy.
At the start of the talks, Medvedev highlighted the importance of cooperation with South Korea in the context of ongoing global financial troubles.
"There is a difficult situation in the world economy, and the development of productive bilateral ties between Russia and South Korea is particularly valuable in these circumstances," he said.
Yonhap said that under the memorandum of understanding between the countries' energy ministries, the Korea National Oil Corp. will conduct a joint feasibility study on deposits in Kalmykia, a republic on Russia's Caspian coast, and a consortium of Korea Electric Power Corp., Korea Resources Corp. and LG International will participate in developing uranium mines in Russia.
The leaders' joint statement said: "The Russian side welcomes the Korean side's intention to take part in tenders for the use of natural resources, and the construction of oil and gas refining facilities and liquefied gas stations in Russia's Far East."
The leaders also agreed to broaden cooperation in sea freight, measures to counter illegal fishing, military-technical production, and the protection of intellectual property rights, and to improve the trade structure between the countries, increasing the share of hi-tech goods among Russia's exports to South Korea.
