Russian joint staff doubts North Korea has nuclear weapons

The Russian Joint Staff doubts that North Korea has nuclear weapons, First Deputy Chief of Staff Yuri Baluyevsky told journalists on Wednesday.

"I am sure that the crisis around North Korea will not escalate into an armed conflict. I believe that North Korea is, rudely speaking, bluffing saying that it has nuclear weapons. Thus it is trying to solve some domestic problems, such as energy supplies," Baluyevsky said.

Pyongyang's statements should be taken calmly, he pointed out.

Participants of the talks, the USA, Russia, China, Japan and South Korea, should force the North Korean leadership to stop blackmailing the world and its own population," Baluyevsky pointed out.

"Proximity of North Korea is very sensitive for Russia, and thus we want the region to be more stable than it is now," he added.

"Russia's position is not to allow even a potential possibility for this conflict to escalate into an armed one," he emphasized.