A top Russian official said Wednesday that Moscow is against the attempts to drag out talks on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s nuclear issue by including matters of purely bilateral interest in the agenda of the negotiations.

Including individual questions on the agenda will hinder the guarantee for a nuclear-free status on the Korean peninsula and for the security of the countries in the region, Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko said in a statement published on the ministry's website on Wednesday.

"In this respect, we understand the concern of our American partners," he said.

Earlier, US Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security John Bolton said that attempts to put off the six-party talks because one or several sides want to raise vital questions at the discussions should be rejected.

Bolton's statement followed Pyongyang's demand that Tokyo be prevented from participating in the talks. Japan has accused the DPRK of abducting its nationals in the 1970-1980s and hopes to discuss the matter at the upcoming meeting.

The DPRK said Japan has no reason to link the issue with its nuclear program and accused Japan of the abduction and forced conscription of several million Koreans during its colonial rule of the Korean peninsula in 1910-1945.

Yakovenko said Russia "favors continuity and priority of the six-sided talks on DPRK's nuclear problem," adding that a nuclear-free status for the peninsula and security guarantees to countries in the region "would create a favorable atmosphere for resolving bilateral problems."

(Xinhua News Agency December 4, 2003)