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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| Russia urges S Korea to scrap drill |
| 2010-12-18 |
| [Al Jazeera] Russia has asked South Korea to stop a scheduled joint military exercise with the United States, hours after North Korea warned it will strike back if the South proceeds with the drill. The foreign ministry in Moscow on Friday summoned South Korean and US ambassadors to express its "deep concern" over South Korea's plans to carry out live-fire drills over the weekend. The ministry in a statement called on Seoul to "refrain from holding the planned firing of artillery in order to prevent the further escalation of tensions on the Korean peninsula". Russia's intervention follows a warning by North Korea earlier on Friday that it will retaliate if the South holds the drills near the disputed border in the Yellow Sea on Yeonpyeong Island, which the North shelled last month. The ministry said a similar drill on November 23 had "provoked an exchange of fire ... that caused casualties", echoing North Korea's assertion that its shelling of the island was a response to South Korean artillery fire. The Russian ministry also said it was "extremely important" to ease tension between the two Koreas, restore dialogue and resolve all disputes without using force. Russia, a member of the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear disarmament, hosted the North Korean foreign minister last week in a bid to help the two Koreas negotiate their way out of the escalating dispute. When Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, met with his North Korean counterpart on Monday, he said military exercises had added to tension but also that the North's shelling of the island deserved condemnation, according to the ministry. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 Don't know what their gripe is - Norks carry out live fire exercises AT South Koreans, including civilians. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2010-12-18 09:54 |