MOSCOW, February 12./TASS/. Russia gives high marks to efforts of the North Korean leadership towards improving the situation with security on the Korean peninsula, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s First Asian Department Georgy Zinoviev said at a reception at the North Korean Embassy in Moscow marking the birthday of Kim Jong Il on Tuesday.

"Russia unwaveringly speaks in favor of a peaceful settlement of the nuclear and other problems of the Korean peninsula. We note with satisfaction that positive tendencies in the development of the situation in the sub-region that began to show last year, continue," the diplomat said.

"We highly value initiating moves and efforts made by the leadership of the DPRK towards this," he went on to say.

"I am confident that the further strengthening of bilateral cooperation on that trajectory will make a major contribution to the strengthening of security and stability on the Korean peninsula and in the region of Northeast Asia," Zinoviev said.