#6 - RW 270
N. Korea refused to observe joint naval exercises: Russia
MOSCOW (AFP) Aug 20, 2003

North Korea has refused to send observers to oversee joint Russian, Japanese and South Korean naval exercises off Russia's Pacific coast, ITAR-TASS quoted Russia's defense minister as saying Wednesday.Sergei Ivanov said that North Korean officials had informed him they would not send observers to the naval war games because of "heightened tensions on the Korean peninsula," according to ITAR-TASS.

The chief of the Russian navy, Vladimir Kuroyedov, said that "Pyongyang has refused to send its military observers to the exercise due to the reported aggravation of the situation in the region," according to the Interfax news agency.

Russia started the unprecendented 10-day exercises in the Sea of Japan on August 18.

US coastguard ships are later due to take part in joint naval exercises with the Russian navy in the Bering Straits.

Separately, the head of Russia's navy Vladimir Kuroyedov said Russian naval forces were "closely watching" joint US-South Korean maneuvers that are taking place also in the Sea of Japan.

The international show of naval strength comes before key multilateral talks in China aimed at resolving the standoff over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons ambitions.

The talks are due to begin in Beijing on August 27 and are to be attended by North and South Korea, China, Japan, Russia and the United States.

They will mark Russia's first official appearance at international negotiations over Washington's nuclear standoff with Pyongyang.

Russia has maintained relatively friendly relations with the hermetic Stalinist state with which it shares a common border.

North Korea earlier Wednesday rejected an early inspection of its nuclear facilities demanded by the United States as "absolutely unacceptable," toughening its stance ahead of six-nation talks aimed at ending a long-running crisis over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.

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