Russia, China join US in pressuring North Korea to negotiate nukes

MOSCOW – Russia and China urged North Korea on Wednesday to return to the negotiating table on the fate of its rogue nuclear programs – an unusual joint appeal from two Security Council members who have resisted more punitive U.S. measures against Pyongyang.

The appeal, which also expressed “serious concern” about tensions on Korean peninsula, came just hours after North Korea warned of a “thousand-fold” military retaliation against the United States and its allies if provoked. The United States, meanwhile, called on Pyongyang to stop its saber-rattling and negotiate.

The fact that the Chinese and Russian leaders used their meetings in Moscow to jointly pressure North Korea appeared to be a signal that Moscow and Beijing are growing impatient with Pyongyang’s stubbornness. And with both Washington and Pyongyang exchanging near daily rhetorical salvos, Russia and China appeared to be positioning themselves as moderators in the dispute.

After meetings at the Kremlin, Chinese President Hu Jintao joined Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in urging a peaceful resolution of the Korean standoff and the “swiftest renewal” of the now-frozen talks involving their countries as well as North and South Korea, Japan and the United States.

“Russia and China are ready to foster the lowering of tension in Northeast Asia and call for the continuation of efforts by all sides to resolve disagreements through peaceful means, through dialogue and consultations,” the statement said.

The comments – contained in a lengthy statement that discussed a host of other global issues – included no new initiatives, but it appeared to be carefully worded to avoid provoking Pyongyang. In remarks after their meetings, Medvedev made only a brief reference to North Korea and Jintao did not mention it.

Hours earlier, North Korea reacted angrily to President Obama’s declaration that North Korea was a “grave threat” to the world. Obama spoke during a summit with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Washington.

“If the U.S. and its followers infringe upon our republic’s sovereignty even a bit, our military and people will launch a one hundred- or one thousand-fold retaliation with merciless military strike,” the government-run Minju Joson newspaper said in a commentary.