Putin warns of global catastrophe

ROGUE STATE: ‘DON’T DRIVE PYONGYANG INTO CORNER’

South Korea frets about dangers posed by North’s nuke programme.

Vladivostok

Russian President Vladimir Putin and South Korean President Moon Jae-in yesterday agreed that resolving the North Korea crisis as soon as possible was the top priority, while Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said it was a “dangerous game for the entire world”.

“Why has North Korea chosen this path today, which has worried people in East Asia? It is because of threats against North Korea’s existence,” Rouhani said in a speech to his Cabinet.

“Can one joke around with atomic weapons? When a country has obtained an atomic weapon, then the game of threatening them becomes a dangerous game for the entire world. We believe this issue must be resolved through negotiations and dialogue.”

North Korea conducted a sixth nuclear test at the weekend, saying it was a hydrogen bomb that could be fitted on to a missile, prompting the US to accuse the isolated nation of “begging for war”.

Rouhani said US officials needed to tone down their rhetoric.

“Leave them be. Don’t threaten North Korea so much and she will pursue her life and that of her people,” he said.

Moon was also concerned. “It is more important than anything else to resolve the North’s nuclear and missile issues, which are the most urgent and gravest challenges facing this region, at an earliest date,” he said.

“I and President Putin also agreed that the missile development pursued by North Korea is a wrong path and it is an urgent task to ease tension on the Korean peninsula,” he said.

Putin stressed the need for a political solution, saying further sanctions and pressure would not solve the problem. “Today, as never before, everyone needs to show composure and avoid steps that lead to an escalation of tensions.

“It would be extremely difficult to advance the situation at hand without political and diplomatic instruments,” he said.

“It is not worth giving in to emotions and driving North Korea into a corner.”

World powers are scrambling to respond to the latest advance in North Korea’s rogue nuclear weapons programme, which has sent global tensions soaring.

Russia has rebuffed US calls for new UN sanctions while Washington has promised its allies advanced weaponry.

Putin warned of a global catastrophe unless a diplomatic solution was reached over North Korea, rejecting US calls for more sanctions as useless, widening the split between major powers over how to rein in Pyongyang. –