North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, has confirmed that the country will observe a self-declared moratorium on missile testing until 2003. His announcement came during talks with the Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow today.
The two leaders signed a joint declaration on North Korea’s missile programme. The pact states that North Korea’s missile programme is peaceful and is not designed to threaten any nation respecting North Korea’s sovereignty.
The move echoes assurances given by Kim Jong-il last week that the US should not view North Korea as a danger to world security. Washington has said it intends to build a missile defence shield to protect it from attacks from what it has dubbed "rogue states" such as North Korea.
The two leaders also discussed economic ties between the two countries. Tomorrow Kim Jong-il is scheduled to visit Russia's mission control centre and the Khrunichev space technology firm, which are both located near Moscow, before travelling on to St Petersburg.
