BUCHAREST, 2 sept — Sputnik. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the tensions in the Korean Peninsula should be settled through a direct dialogue of all the parties concerned „without any preconditions".
He warned that pressures that are being put on Pyongyang could worsen the situation and even trigger a major conflict.
"The situation on the Korean Peninsula, where tensions have grown recently, is balancing on the brink of a large-scale conflict. Russia believes that the policy of putting pressure on Pyongyang to stop its nuclear missile program is misguided and futile," Putin wrote, according to RT.com.
He thinks that the tensions in the region should be settled through a direct dialogue of all the parties concerned „without any preconditions."
„Provocations, pressure and militarist and insulting rhetoric are a dead-end road," he noted.
The Russian leader is expected to attend a summit of the BRICS nations that will take place in China next week.
Russia and China have initiated a "double freeze" plan to resolve the Korean crisis, promoting the gradual easing of tensions. The plan is designed to cease any missile launches and nuclear tests by Pyongyang, as well as large-scale military exercises by Washington and Seoul.
The UN Security Council unanimously agreed, last month, to impose more restrictive measures on Pyongyang, banning exports of coal, iron, lead, and seafood. The move came in response to North Korea's missile launches in July, which it, as well as South Korea and the US, claimed were intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests. Moscow has questioned the claim, arguing North Korea was testing intermediate range rockets.
At the same time, China announced a full ban on imports of coal, iron, and seafood, among other goods from North Korea as of August 15, thus cutting key export revenues for Pyongyang.
