24 Nov 2017 14:34

U.S. missile defense deployment in region of Korean Peninsula to harm regional security - Lavrov

MOSCOW. Nov 24 (Interfax) - The United States' plans to deploy missile-defense systems in the region of the Korean Peninsula will have negative implications for security in the Asia-Pacific region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference after negotiations with his Japanese counterpart.

"We are especially concerned about the plans of the U.S., which is deploying elements of the U.S. global missile-defense network in this region," Lavrov said.

"We have called attention to the negative implications of these actions for security in the Asia Pacific region," he said.

"We believe that regional security should be strengthened not by increasing cooperation in closed military-political blocs but on a transparent, inclusive, and pan-regional basis and in the context of the dialogue on Asia-Pacific security architecture, which started at the East Asia Summit meetings and was systematized at the ASEAN's Jakarta headquarters," Lavrov said.