N Korea: Talks only option

2009-11-24 22:18

Moscow - North Korea has no alternative but to reopen negotiations over its nuclear programme, the president of Russia's upper house of parliament Sergey Mironov said on Tuesday.

"There is no real alternative to the negotiations," Mironov was quoted as saying by the Itar-Tass news agency.

North Korea quit six-party talks with South Korea, China, Russia, Japan and the United States in April, a month before it tested a second atomic weapon.

Mironov stressed that "only the negotiation process, guarantees and multilateral involvement can lead to the successful political settlement of the nuclear issue."

"Russia cannot look calmly on when they are building and testing a nuclear weapon," he added.

While urging the North Koreans to return to talks, Mironov said he understood Pyongyang was wary of a strong military presence from the United States, South Korea and Japan close to its borders.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il said last month he was ready to reopen talks, but only if bilateral discussions with the United States are satisfactory.

Stephen Bosworth, US special representative for North Korean policy, is scheduled to visit the communist state on December 8 in a bid to persuade it to return to the negotiating table.

- AFP