章 685: Chapter 685: It’s Enough to Be Alone
As soon as I stepped into the room, Medvedev rushed out to meet me.
"Boss Kim! It's even more delightful to see you in Seoul!"
After our hug, Medvedev laughed heartily.
I doubted his joy was all that genuine.
To gauge his reaction, I casually remarked,
"We just met in Moscow not long ago."
"I sincerely apologize for that encounter."
Medvedev slightly bowed his head.
"I would never disrespect or fail to esteem you, Boss Kim."
As expected, he replied with a caution I anticipated. He feared losing my trust.
He was maintaining his position as the second-in-command solely because he was the president's friend.
His important roles as the chairman of Gazprom and the executive director stemmed from being someone the president trusted.
In an authoritarian state, the second-in-command constantly faces scrutiny and various conspiracies.
'Medvedev has a weak support base. He lacks people to back him up.'
Neither the oligarchs nor the siloviki supported Medvedev.
Ironically, absent a support base, he had become the second-in-command in Russia, causing him to feel more uneasy.
That was why Medvedev placed such high importance on maintaining ties with me.
I didn't have a bad rapport with either the oligarchs or the siloviki.
"Of course. There's no way Medvedev wouldn't respect me. Still, I wasn't in a great mood back then."
"I was too hasty, caught up in my eagerness during that time."
"But there's no need to keep holding onto past events. So, don't take it too much to heart, Medvedev."
"Haha. Thank you. I'm glad to see Boss Kim has a generous demeanor."
Medvedev laughed again, glancing at me for reassurance.
It seemed like he was trying hard to mask the shadow in his heart with laughter.
"Let's sit down first."
He gestured for me to take a seat, and we sat facing each other.
"I ordered room service for our meal. I wanted a quiet place to talk."
Everything Medvedev did attracted media attention.
It would have been burdensome to go down to a restaurant with me.
"By the way, I heard you had negotiations with the Minister of Industry and Trade and the Minister of Foreign Affairs today. How did that go?"
As I asked about the negotiations, Medvedev, who had been smiling, sighed.
"We decided to talk again tomorrow. The South Korean government is quite frustrating. The discussions have already concluded between the presidents, yet they keep dragging it out by citing procedures."
Medvedev complained.
In authoritarian states like Russia, everyone involved follows the president's orders in unison.
But Korea couldn't work that way. The emphasis on procedures at the negotiation table likely stemmed from that.
It was natural for Medvedev to struggle with the different pace compared to Russia, where orders flowed rapidly from the president.
"That's because it's Korea. Power isn't concentrated in one person like in Russia. The citizens won't tolerate it. They suffered from that issue decades ago. So, they emphasize procedures."
"I understand. But this negotiation benefits Korea much more than Russia, doesn't it? Without you, Boss Kim, I wouldn't have come to Korea myself."
Medvedev's words carried weight.
Russia was already pursuing pipeline projects with China.
If it hadn't been for me, there would have been no urgency to proceed with this venture in Korea.
"I'm well aware of that. Thank you for always accommodating my requests."
"Isn't it your request, Boss Kim? It's only natural. By the way, do you know the Minister of Industry and Trade well? What's he like?"
Medvedev, with a gentle smile, suddenly asked.
"Are you referring to Minister Lee Jin-sik?"
"Yes."
"I only know his name; I've never met him directly."
"I see. How rigid he is! But now, with Jungwoo Construction handling the PM role, he's totally changed his tune and dropped to a lower position."
I had a good enough idea of what might've occurred.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade had made various efforts to secure PM contracts for domestic construction firms.
However, they repeatedly hit walls of reality and faced failure.
"Haha. It's probably because he's a civil servant. You know well, Medvedev, civil servants don't like taking responsibility."
"I know that too. But he's gone too far."
"Wasn't the negotiation going smoothly? The president's will should be firm, right?"
"Yes. The meeting with President Yoon Chang-ho concluded positively. After reaching a general consensus, we sat down with the working-level staff at the negotiation table."
President Yoon Chang-ho's resolve was firm.
The project offered a chance to diversify energy imports and achieve stability in the livelihood sector as a bonus.
"Were there additional discussions to refine the details?"
"Alongside Jungwoo Construction taking the PM role, they mentioned they hope to add one more construction firm to form a consortium. If that happens, they'll concede all other conditions."
"A consortium? They want to bring in another construction firm… They need results from their PM role, huh? Do they have a specific firm in mind?"
"They didn't specify a particular firm."
Could there be a construction firm that Minister Lee Jin-sik is promoting? This was something I'd need to investigate separately.
"They mentioned there's a lead person for this project, so they suggested we talk again tomorrow."
"You did well."
"What should we do then? With that condition, it seems we could secure many concessions from the Korean government."
For Medvedev, adding another construction firm was trivial.
If that led to gaining something much larger, then it made sense.
"There's really no need for that. Jungwoo Construction is sufficient on its own. There's no point in sharing it with another construction firm."
While forming a consortium could reduce the burden, it might indeed make things easier.
Yet, despite the 'benefit' of being a consortium, it would resemble a single body with multiple heads.
Decision-making would slow, potentially creating issues in project progress.
There was no reason to take on that risk.
"Hmm… Then I'll take that as my answer and decline."
Medvedev did not argue with my decision.
Even if it ran counter to Russia's national interest, he understood that my intentions mattered more in this instance.
I could sense his careful demeanor, not wishing to offend me.
"You intend to personally handle negotiations with North Korea, correct?"
"Of course. I need to go to Pyongyang for the development of the Nampo Economic Special Zone and various matters. I'll contact you as soon as I schedule it, so I hope you also come along, Medvedev."
"Understood. Just give me a heads up, and I'll try to align my schedule."
At that moment, there was a bell sound from the door, followed by a man's voice.
"Chairman, the room service has arrived."
Medvedev got up from his seat and opened the door.
His aides quickly rolled in a cart brought by an employee and set it down on the table.
After the aides exited, Medvedev locked the door again.
"I thought it would be better for just the two of us to talk, so I had the aides waiting outside. Let's have a simple meal and converse."
Medvedev poured wine into our glasses as he spoke.
Why wine instead of vodka today? Medvedev shot me an awkward smile as he finished pouring the wine, noticing my gaze.
"I ordered a simple wine since my schedule is tight tomorrow. Is that alright?"
"Of course! By the way, where will you be heading tomorrow?"
"I plan to go down to Ulsan in the morning."
"Ulsan?"
Medvedev extended his wine glass toward me.
"Yes. I'm thinking of taking a look at Jungwoo Refinery."
I accepted the wine glass he offered.
"Sounds like a great idea. After all, Jungwoo Refinery is at the heart of this project."
"Korean refining technology is among the best in the world, isn't it?"
"Indeed. But I've heard the refining method for Russian crude oil differs somewhat from that for Dubai crude oil."
"Our Russian crude oil is of much higher quality. Unlike Dubai oil, which is high-sulfur heavy oil, Russian crude oil is low-sulfur light oil."
Medvedev said proudly.
Heavy oil? Light oil? I was investing in the crude oil business, yet it wasn't my area of expertise, so I didn't know much about it.
I raised my wine glass and asked him.
"What's the difference? Isn't all crude oil the same?"
Medvedev clinked his glass with mine and chuckled.
"Heavy oil requires high-level refining technology. The refining costs are significant. However, the advantage is that it's cheaper in price."
"So, heavy oil is low-priced, but refining costs are high, huh?"
"Exactly. But light oil, which includes gasoline and diesel, has a higher added value, making it more expensive than heavy oil."
After taking a sip of wine, Medvedev elaborated on crude oil.
In summary, he explained that U.S. WTI, North Sea Brent, and Russian crude oil mainly fall under the category of light oil, while Middle Eastern Dubai oil is classified as heavy oil.
They do extract different types of oil, but since the proportion is minimal, they're mostly categorized that way.
"Ah, so that's why WTI trades around $50 per barrel, while Dubai oil hovers around $40?"
"Exactly."
Currently, Dream High was heavily investing in crude oil futures and options trading.
They had already seen substantial profits and were continuing to bet on rising crude oil prices.
The crude oil prices maintained a steady upward trend at a gradual pace.
"Although our Russian crude oil is of high quality, we are exporting it at a price similar to Dubai oil. We are absolutely not at a disadvantage in terms of price competitiveness."
The crude oil market was moving largely in three distinct segments.
There were Western Texas Intermediate (WTI) from the U.S., Dubai oil from the Middle East, and Brent crude from the North Sea.
WTI traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Brent crude on the London International Petroleum Exchange, and Dubai oil in the Middle East and Singapore.
"Isn't Russian crude oil categorized within Brent crude?"
"Broadly, yes. However, we are determined to challenge the oil market dominated by Western countries. Currently, these three types represent the global oil market, but soon Russian crude oil will create a new paradigm."
The energy market was a crucial sector capable of establishing hierarchies among nations.
Along with food, energy sources are considered one of the most potent weapons.
"I will support you."
"Thank you. That's why this project is so vital for Russia. Most of the Russian crude oil is sold to Western European nations. But that's changing now. Once the pipeline connecting China and Korea is completed, the global crude oil market will likely be at Russia's mercy."
With the end of the Cold War, Russia yielded its hegemony to the U.S. Now, they harbored aspirations to reclaim it, using oil as the foundation.
Had the shale revolution not occurred, Russia's dreams might have come true.
Yet, I didn't dare to mock Medvedev's dreams lightly.
"Nashin should be important."
"Yes. We acquired the development rights to Nachin City on the condition of completely forgiving the debt we lent to the North Korean government. We plan to establish the Nakhodka Economic Special Zone as a forward base for Russia to access the Pacific Ocean."
The plan was promising. Besides, hadn't Nakhodka always been a dream for Russia to have as an ice-free port?
"First, let's finish our meal."
"Let's do that."
During the meal, only trivial chit-chat occurred. After finishing a light meal, I laid down my knife and called out to Medvedev.
"Medvedev."
"Yes, Boss Kim?"
"What's the end goal for you? Where do you aim to be?"
"…"
He stared at me with a dazed expression, as if probing the intent behind my question.
"There's no ulterior motive. I heard that the Russian Constitution limits a president's terms to two consecutive terms."
In the recent Russian presidential election, the incumbent president achieved 72% support and was re-elected.
Yet, due to the constitutional limits on consecutive terms, he wouldn't be able to run in the 2008 election.
"Shouldn't you start preparing yourself?"
"…I just want to live a long and thin life. I have no desire to become president."
"Oh really? Once the current president steps down, your power will fly away too."
"…"
"What if you started building a faction right now?"
"The president will not let it slide."
Medvedev said firmly. Yet, fear was unmistakable in his voice.
"You should speak with the president. Ask him to make you his successor."
"Do you mean to be a puppet?"
"That's how you maintain your power. I can assist you with that."
"How do you propose to help me?"
In reality, history had already placed Medvedev as the next president.
Yet, with only the title of president, he would act as the tsar's puppet.
If so, keeping Medvedev within my control could be the key.
"I will make you a true president."
While the current president was hard to deal with, Medvedev was different.
I was determined to become the kingmaker.
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