"Therefore, parallel with continued pressure on North Korea, not instead but parallel with the continued pressure on North Korea, Russia and China proposed a parallel political track… North Korea suspends all launches and all tests and in response the US and South Korea do not cancel but reduce the scale of their war games in that region which we believe could help to defuse the situation and allow for some professional discussions to build up confidence starting by very simple things, you know, adopting a statement that no one is going to attack each other. The security of each of the participants of this process would be mutually guaranteed," Lavrov told the NBC network.
The Russian foreign minister stressed that it would take time to implement this strategy but it is "the only way to save us from a disaster which is looming."
On Thursday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov and Chinese Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Kong Xuanyou discussed possible ways to reduce tensions on the Korean peninsula and agreed to continue coordination at all levels and work on improving the situation.
The tensions in the region have recently intensified due to Pyongyang's multiple nuclear tests and launches of ballistic missiles, conducted in violation of the UN Security Council’s resolutions. On July 4, North Korea announced it had successfully launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile, saying it traveled 580 miles and reached an altitude of 1,740 miles during its 39-minute flight before accurately hitting a targeted area in the Sea of Japan. The test was sharply criticized by the international community.
