Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called on Tuesday on his South Korean counterpart to show restraint and not allow the situation on the Korean peninsula to escalate, the Kremlin press service said.
Medvedev spoke with President Lee Myung-bak by telephone about the heightened tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang over the sinking of a South Korean warship in the Yellow Sea on March 26.
An international investigation found that a North Korean submarine had fired a torpedo at the 1,200-ton Cheonan corvette. The vessel sank near the disputed Northern Limit Line causing the loss of 46 lives.
"Both leaders have expressed regret that a number of important inter-Korean projects in the trade and economic spheres, which were drawn up with Russian help several years ago, have not been implemented, and that the general situation has deteriorated to the level of confrontation," the statement said.
The two presidents confirmed that they were ready to continue consultations on all matters relating to the Korean Peninsula.
MOSCOW, May 25 (RIA Novosti)
