Foreign relations of Korea

North Korea on Feb. 22 accused U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of being a “kind of henchman who is representing the United States” after the U.N. chief said sanctions were essential to pressure Pyongyang.

North and South Korea will hold official talks next week for the first time in more than two years after Pyongyang accepted Seoul’s offer for dialogue, just hours after the United States and South Korea delayed a joint military exercise.

The Russian president Vladimir Putin has warned that the escalating North Korean crisis could cause a "planetary catastrophe" and huge loss of life.

"Ramping up military hysteria in such conditions is senseless; it's a dead end," he told reporters in China, according to the Kremlin-backed broadcaster RT.

South Korean President Moon Jae-In warned on May 17 there was a "high possibility" of military clashes along the border with North Korea as tensions mount over Pyongyang's weapons ambitions.

Moon, who was sworn in last week, warned that the North's nuclear and rocket programs were "advancing rapidly," days after Pyongyang launched what appeared to be its longest-range missile yet.