Russian Foreign Minister: "Vietnam never forgets its friends, does not confront anyone"
(Baonghean.vn) - This was the assertion of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on February 24 when asked why the US-North Korea summit was held in Hanoi. Mr. Lavrov also said that US officials had consulted Russia on preparations for the second US-North Korea summit to take place in Hanoi on February 27-28.
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| Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Photo: Getty |
Russia's top diplomat stressed the importance of turning the agreements reached at the first US-North Korea summit in Singapore last year into actions, with specific time frames and responsibilities.
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| US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at their first summit in Singapore last June. Photo: Reuters. |
"I would like to note that everything that happened during and after the first summit in Singapore, all the efforts made by the parties were within the framework of the Russian-Chinese roadmap, which means a gradual, consistent approach to resolving the problem on the Korean Peninsula. First, the parties should refrain from making statements and actions that would provoke the other side, and then the parties should engage in negotiations to consolidate an approach that would allow for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and achieve the security of all Northeast Asian countries in the interests of the development of North Korea," Lavrov said.
According to Mr. Lavrov, the final agreements need to be signed within a multilateral framework, because Northeast Asian issues need to be commensurate with agreements involving all relevant parties, such as South Korea, China, Russia and Japan.
Responding to the question of why Hanoi was chosen as the venue for the second US-North Korea summit, Foreign Minister Lavrov said that Vietnam is a responsible country in implementing its foreign policy. He affirmed: "Vietnam is an open and cooperative country, never forgetting its friends and not seeking confrontation with anyone."
