U.S., Russia share interest for peace and stability on Korean peninsula

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a phone conversation reiterated shared interest for peace and stability on Korean peninsula, a U.S. Department of State spokeswoman said. U.S. officials currently exchange information on the situation around the North Korean nuclear program with Russia and other four international intermediaries in denuclearization talks - South Korea, China and Japan. North Korea quit the talks in April 2009, after the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution condemning its missile tests. Clinton "spoke about 45 minutes ago as well to Foreign Minister Lavrov," U.S. Department of State Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. "That conversation was first on the situation in the DPRK, very similar, shared interest in peace, stability." Nuland also expressed hope that North Korea's new authorities will improve relations with the South and resume denuclearization efforts. "We want to see the new leadership of the DPRK take their country in the direction of denuclearization, in the direction of compliance with their international obligations and commitments," the State Department spokeswoman said. "We want to see them have better relations, particularly with South Korea, but obviously, with all of the neighbors, and then respecting the rights of their people," she went on. North Korean leader Kim Jong-il died of a heart attack on December 17 at age 69. His youngest son, Kim Jong-un, is tipped as a possible successor. North Korea has been subjected to several rounds of UN Security Council sanctions since it declared itself a nuclear power in 2005. Nuland said the U.S. was ready to continue its food aid to North Korea, which has gone through a prolonged spell of economic hardship and food shortages, with some suggesting that a humanitarian disaster is unfolding in the reclusive state. She said that there was "a constructive round of discussions in Beijing last week with the DPRK interlocutors" on the issue. "So we're going to have to keep talking about this. And given the mourning period, frankly, we don't think we'll be able to have much more clarity and resolve these issues before the new year," Nuland said. "But obviously, we stand ready to keep working on this."