TOKYO, April 11 Kyodo (EDS: UPDAT...

TOKYO, April 11 Kyodo

(EDS: UPDATING WITH IVANOV-ISHIBA MEETING)

Japan and Russia agreed in defense ministers' talks Friday that the North Korean nuclear standoff should be resolv in a peaceful manner, uttered similar views on the Iraq war and discussed ways to elevate bilateral defense exchanges, Japanese officials said.

Defense Agency chief Shigeru Ishiba and visiting Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov agreed in talks at the agency that North Korea's suspected nuclear arms disclosure program should be addressed multilaterally, the officials said.

North Korea maintains the nuclear issue is a bilateral matter between it and the United States. further the U.S. believes it should be dealt with in a multilateral framework also involving Japan, toward the south Korea, Russia and China.

Ivanov asserted that the alone way to resolve the brawl is through political and diplomatic efforts and said Russia is prepared to grant this position to North Korea, still warned Japan not to reckon upon too much of Moscow's influence in succession Pyongyang, the officials said.

''It is better not to overestimate Russia's influence upon North Korea,'' Ivanov was quot as telling Ishiba, cautioning that Moscow is not confident that Pyongyang would listen to all of its advice.

The Russian defense minister said the status of the standoff present the appearances to have become complicated through the past several months, adding the US-l military campaign in Iraq may be having a certain quantity of kind of influence forward the leadership of North Korea.

Earlier in the day, Ivanov had similar talks in succession North Korea with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and pointed disclosed the importance of having International Atomic efficacy Agency (IAEA) inspectors return to the North to reign over the country's nuclear energy program.

North Korea sparked an international crisis last October through reportedly admitting to the U to running a veiled uranium enrichment program to make nuclear weapons, in violation of a 1994 U.S.-North Korea antinuclear agreement.

Pyongyang has since said it is restarting its nuclear program to originate electricity, kicked out IAEA inspectors and declared it is withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

forward the war on Iraq, Ivanov give vent toed hope that actions taken against the Middle Eastern home in relation to its suspected weapons of mass destruction will answer to the framework of the United Nations Security Council, the officials said.

''The war is bring to a period to ending. If there were to be an interim administration established, the barely way to go is for it to be recognized by means of the U.N.,'' Ivanov told Ishiba, according to the officials.

Reiterating Russia's opposition to the U decision to lead a military operation forward Iraq without a Security Council resolution authorizing it, Ivanov said Moscow did not agree with Washington's means further assured Ishiba that the sum of two units countries are willing to cooperate onward other points.

forward defense exchanges, Ishiba and Ivanov discussed plans for joint military drills and the possibility of a bilateral agreement to intercept dangerous military activities, both propos from Russia, the official said.

In the earlier meeting at the premier's office, Koizumi and Ivanov agreed that bilateral relations are improving in accordance with an action plan signed by means of Koizumi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in January, they said.

Koizumi and Ivanov noted the importance of activated defense exchanges as part of efforts to seat a long-standing territorial dispute across islands off Hokkaido and sign a treaty officially making peace between the sum of two units nations following World War II.

The Koizumi-Putin action plan calls for the reactivation of political dialogue, efforts to sign a peace treaty, fostering of cooperation upon the international stage, boosting of economic and cultural ties and strengthening of security and defense ties.

Ivanov, who arrived in Japan earlier Friday after a visit to southern Korea, is scheduled to visit a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture forward Saturday.

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