Vladimir Putin, currently on an official visit to India, and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said their countries call for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula, its denuclearization, and a resolution of the nuclear problem on the basis of the international joint statement adopted in September 2005.
In September 2005, North Korea signed the joint statement with the other parties to the six-nation talks aimed at finding a peaceful resolution to the Communist country's nuclear program, committing itself to abandoning its nuclear weapons program in exchange for aid and security guarantees.
However, the reclusive north boycotted the process two months later following Washington's demand that its accounts at a Macau-based bank be frozen for alleged money laundering and counterfeiting of U.S. dollars. During the 13-month standoff that followed, North Korea carried out its first nuclear test explosion and tested ballistic missiles.
The six-nation talks on the North Korean nuclear problem, which were launched in 2003 and involve the two Koreas, Russia, China, Japan and the United States, resumed in December 2006, but ended without result. At a symbolic ceremony in Beijing, the six participating delegations made a joint statement reiterating their commitment to further negotiations in the same format.
