Russia on Tuesday warned against an escalation of tensions after North Korea fired artillery shells onto a South Korean border island, a foreign ministry official told Interfax.
"It's important that this does not lead to an aggravation of the situation on the Korean peninsula," the official, who was not named, told Interfax.
North Korea fired artillery shells onto a South Korean border island on Tuesday, causing casualties and prompting an exchange of fire with southern troops, officials and reports said.
The firing came after North Korea's disclosure of an apparently operational uranium enrichment programme — a second potential way of building a nuclear bomb — which is causing serious alarm for the United States and its allies.