Moscow sees new dynamic of restarting 6-party talks

Moscow saw "new dynamic" of restarting the stalled talks over the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday. "We have paid attention to a number of statements made by leaders of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) which might be an evidence of the new dynamic," spokesman Alexander Lukashevich told reporters. The trend could facilitate restart of the six-party talks, which were launched in 2003 but stalled in December 2008. The six-party talks involve the DPRK, South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia. The DPRK proposed an inter-Korean meeting with South Korea, but the talks were called off Tuesday due to disagreement over the level of chief delegates. Despite the failed talks, Moscow still believed Pyongyang's statement showed there were conditions to push the dialogue forward, said the spokesman. "This is positive." He mentioned that Russia and the DPRK continued their contacts over the the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue. Tensions have flared up on the Korean peninsula since the DPRK conducted its third nuclear test on Feb. 12 as a countermeasure against the U.S.-South Korean joint military drills. The DPRK proposed high-level talks with the United States on Sunday.