Russian Gas Deal with North Korea?

Gazprom is talking about “promising” oil and gas fields off the North Korean coast. While I’m an advocate of cutting off North Korea’s access to hard currency until it commits itself to human rights improvements, this one doesn’t much concern me. I’ve worked as an exploration geologist and studied how the industry works, and it takes many years and millions of dollars to explore and develop a productive oilfield or gasfield. I doubt North Korea will be under the same management ten years from now. What is more troubling is Gazprom’s revival of a proposal to route South Korea’s natural gas lifeline through the North, which (for South Korea) would be the economic equivalent of loading a pistol and handing it to the burglar in your foyer.