ABSTRACT
Russia's Far Eastern border regions have a long history of contact with the Korean people. Although this point is often forgotten, Koreans have lived in Primorskiy Kray (Maritime Province) off and on for more than 150 years, sometimes in considerable numbers. The Russian side has adopted various policies over time regarding Korean citizens, sometimes accepting their residence in the region, sometimes seeking to remove them. Nevertheless, the Russian and Korean states have never been at war, and Russians maintain a friendly attitude toward Koreans. In considering any settlement on the Korean Peninsula, whether directly related to the capping of the North Korean nuclear program or not, it is important to take Russian-Korean relations at the local level into consideration. Given their proximity, the two peoples on either side of this international border are bound to influence one another, and the stability of this relationship is bound to affect broader security on the peninsula, in either a positive or negative way.
