Six-Party Talks With North Korea Unlikely to Resume in Near Future

Resuming the talks on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, with the participation of the DPRK, Russia, South Korea, the United States, China and Japan is unlikely at the moment, Russia's Envoy to UN Vitaly Churkin said Sunday.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, Japanese Ambassador to the United Nations Motohide Yoshikaw said that North Korea's actions breach the UN Security Council's resolutions. The launch can be called a satellite launch, but it involves ballistic missile technology, he said, adding that Japan will insist on a "harsh resolution."

Tensions over North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs escalated after Pyongyang said on January 6 that it had successfully carried out a hydrogen bomb test, triggering condemnation from the international community and prompting the UN Security Council to begin drafting an anti-DPRK resolution.

North Korea previously reported a successful satellite launch in 2012, in violation of the UN Security Council resolution.

"Of course, we would like to see the negotiations, would like to see the resumption of six-party talks, which will lead to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Unfortunately, there is such an atmosphere at the moment that the resumption of the talks is unlikely," Churkin told reporters after a UN extraordinary session over Pyongyang's long-range rocket and satellite launch.