Russia, North Korea Maintain Good Relations, Contacts Occur at Various Levels - Kremlin

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov shared Moscow’s stance on current issues of global policy.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia and North Korea maintain good mutually respectful relations, and contacts occur at various levels, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday. Peskov was asked to comment on statements from the US about exchange of letters between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

"Moscow and Pyongyang maintain good relations, mutually respectful relations, we mean to develop them further. Contacts are being made at various levels. This is our very important neighbor in the region, so these relations will continue to develop," Peskov said.

On Food Crisis on the African Continent

Kiev's statements holding Russia responsible for the famine on the African continent are groundless, erroneous, and they deliberately distort the truth, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

"They are absolutely baseless, they are wrong. This is a deliberate distortion of reality, I mean in the sense that the shortage of cereals, the shortage of food on the African continent is somehow connected with our country, this is not the case," Peskov told reporters.

Russia takes a very responsible position on the supply of food to Africa, the official added.

On Black Sea Grain Deal Prospects

Discussions about the Black Sea Grain Initiative did not bring any specific results yet, but Russia is ready to return to it immediately if conditions concerning Moscow are fulfilled, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday.

"No, I repeat once again, there are no concrete results of this discussion yet. But there will be a discussion of this issue in Moscow today [during the meeting between foreign ministers of Russia and Turkey], and in the very near future, at the highest level, of course. It is difficult to say how effective this will be, but I repeat once again, as a responsible supplier of grain, Russia takes part in such discussions," Peskov told reporters.

The spokesman also recalled Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statement when he said that Russia is ready to return to the grain deal "immediately" as soon as the conditions concerning Moscow are fulfilled.