Moscow asks Washington to display restraint towards North Korea - Foreign Ministry

MOSCOW, April 24. /TASS/. Moscow asks Washington again to display the maximum restraint towards the situation in the Korean Peninsula, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told the media on Monday. "By and large our stance is confined to the awareness an escalation is impossible. Those who proceed along the path of escalation assume tremendous responsibility," he said. "For this reason we ask Washington and the other capitals in the region to display the maximum restraint." "Regardless of anniversaries that may be marked or not marked, the question is not about anniversaries but the approach," Ryabkov said. "There are so many trouble spots around the world that fanning tensions in yet another region and doing that intentionally - in defiance of all warnings and contrary to a clear alternative way, the way of de-escalation - would be the worst of the possible developments," he stated. Situation in the region In recent months North Korea regularly carried out missile launches, which caused serious concern in Japan and the allied countries. Pyongyang’s latest missile test was on April 16. According to US military sources it was unsuccessful. The missile exploded shortly after liftoff. On April 15, North Korea celebrated the 105th birth anniversary of its first and "eternal" president Kim Il-sung. Pyongyang saw a military parade. Japanese analysts believe that on display there were new models of inter-continental ballistic missiles and a submarine-launched ballistic missile. A US naval task force led by the nuclear powered aircraft carrier The Carl Vinson is in the region at the moment. Kyodo said the US task force and Japanese guided missile destroyers The Ashagara and The Samidare on Sunday began a joint exercise south of the Korean Peninsula. For several days the US and Japanese naval ships will practice joint maneuvering. It is not ruled out that the ships will set course towards the northwest and go ahead with the exercise in the Sea of Japan. In this way Japan and the United States hope to exert a restrictive influence on North Korea in view of the possibility of another nuclear test or ballistic missile launch on the occasion of the anniversary of North Korea’s armed forces due on April 25. Chinese television said North Korea is in the process of preparations for what may become its sixth nuclear test. Read more