China Urges Seoul, Pyongyang To End Confrontation

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi (right) with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (file photo)

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi has urged both North and South Korea to open talks and avoid steps that could inflame tensions on the peninsula.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Yang made the comments in a phone call with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.

Yang told Lavrov that tensions on the Korean peninsula risked running out of control and shaking the entire region.

That concern was echoed by Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin.

Later today, the UN Security Council is due to discuss the volatile standoff between North and South Korea, which has spiked as South Korea plans to hold a live-fire military drill amid threats from Pyongyang it will retaliate if the drill goes ahead.

compiled from agency reports