MOSCOW. April 1 (Interfax-AVN) - The war in Iraq may significantly increase the chances that North Korea will succeed in developing nuclear weapons, a Russian deputy foreign minister warned.
Alexander Losyukov told Interfax on Tuesday that "unfortunately, the situation around Iraq has forced North Korea to reinforce its defenses."
"North Korea has already said that if it senses any threat, it will take appropriate steps, including, possibly, the creation of a certain powerful weapon for its protection," Losyukov stressed.
Asked whether the events in Iraq may encourage North Korea to continue its nuclear program, the deputy foreign minister said that "this is absolutely obvious. And the absence of any negotiations (between the United States and North Korea - Interfax) greatly increases this danger."
"North Korea is very well aware of this threat in light of the war in Iraq. I am afraid that what is now going on in Iraq is pushing them in a direction which does not meet the interests of stability and security," Losyukov said.
He believes that "the sole way out is to start immediate negotiations in an effort to curb these trends."
Losyukov said that Russia "is maintaining contacts with North Korea, China, Japan and South Korea, as well as with the United States."
"However, any sort of contacts are a poor substitute for direct dialogue between North Korea and the United States. There are a number of issues which only these two parties will be able to resolve," the deputy foreign minister said.
"If the situation remains as it is now, a negative outcome could ensue in the form of a military conflict on the Korean Peninsula, and we have repeatedly warned of this," he said.
Losyukov expressed regret over the differences in the Russian and U.S. positions concerning ways to prevent the development of nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula, which is our common goal.
"The United States is against any concessions to North Korea. We, for our part, believe that this is perhaps the only way to avert a potential conflict," he noted.