Russian FM calls for diplomacy to resolve US-North Korea nuclear issue

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has called for dialogue between the United States and North Korea and “all the countries concerned” to resolve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula.

"It's only possible to resolve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula by diplomatic means based on dialogue between all the countries concerned,” Lavrov said during the 2019 Nonproliferation Conference in Moscow on Friday.

Last month, officials from Pyongyang and Washington held talks for the first time since President Donald Trump of the United States and Kim Jong-un of North Korea agreed in June to reopen denuclearization negotiations. The talks broke down, however, with North Korea's envoy saying the United States failed to show flexibility.

North Korea’s leader Kim has already set the end of 2019 as the deadline for achieving progress in the stalled talks.

"When the efforts to establish dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang had just started, we, along with the People's Republic of China, expressed our position in support of these contacts. We openly presented our assessments that it would be possible to succeed on the basis of mutual steps," Lavrov added.

Trump and Kim met for the first time in Singapore in June 2018.

Based on a joint statement that was adopted following the summit, the two sides agreed to work toward denuclearization, but that agreement, made in a written document, was broadly worded and the details of such cooperation remain to be worked out.

Following that agreement, Pyongyang took several steps toward denuclearization. It demolished at least one nuclear test site and agreed to allow international inspectors into a missile engine test facility.

But diplomacy snagged as the US refused to reciprocate unilateral North Korean steps. And later, the country’s leader indicated that Pyongyang would resume its nuclear and missile tests.

A second summit between Trump and Kim was held in Vietnam in February, but it collapsed without an agreement.

North Korea on Wednesday denounced Washington for plans to conduct a joint military exercise with South Korea next month, with Kwon Jong Gun at the North's Foreign Ministry saying that the announcement was equivalent to a "declaration for confrontation" that could jeopardize the diplomatic process.

PressTV-North Korea blasts planned US-South military drills

North Korea has strongly denounced Washington for plans to conduct a joint military exercise with Seoul next month.

The Moscow Nonproliferation Conference began on Thursday and is set to come to an end on Saturday.

The conference is hosting about 250 experts from 40 countries and various international organizations, including the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, the CTBTO Preparatory Commission.

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