Russia, North Korean at odds over nuclear potential

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RIA Novosti, PUBLISHED December 16, 2010

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said that every country has the right to peaceful nuclear energy, following talks with his North Korean counterpart, Pak Ui-Chun.

The two diplomats met in Moscow on Monday.

Lavrov condemned Pyongyang's shelling of South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island on November 23, and expressed "deep concern" over the North's recently revealed uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon, in a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry.

However, a statement from the North Korean Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that "the Russian side took notice of North Korea's stand that nuclear activity for peaceful purposes is the independent right of each country."

It also added that "both sides agreed to make joint efforts to defend peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula through bilateral and multilateral talks, including the six-party talks."

North Korea has been subjected to several rounds of UN Security Council sanctions since it declared itself a nuclear power in 2005. The state broke off talks with South Korea, China, the United States, Japan and Russia over its nuclear program last April.

Topics: Asia, DPRK, Russia

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