SEOUL -- For Korean watchers, the overriding question regarding North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's visit to Moscow is whether it has brought him any closer to Seoul. Beyond receiving accolades for a summit in Moscow last weekend, the exact purpose behind the trip or, more precisely, Kim's final destination, remains obscure.
Does Kim intend merely to return to Pyongyang, having pocketed Putin's understanding, if not his largess, or will he press on to Seoul to complete last year's summit cycle? Is the Russian trip a prelude to an opening of the severed Seoul-Pyongyang rail link, or merely a way of adding drama to a never-ending saga?
Once again, the emphasis is on the great-power dimension of the Korean problem, with the Putin summit to be followed by a Jiang-Kim summit in Pyongyang in September, which in turn will be followed by a Bush-Kim Dae Jung summit in Seoul in October.