Russia was against the United Nations' sanction on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), a spokesman for the DPRK foreign ministry said Friday.

During a meeting between visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his DPRK counterpart Pak Ui Chun, the two sides discussed bilateral relations and the situation on the Korean peninsula following a UN Security Council statement, said the spokesman, quoted by the official news agency KCNA.

Both sides agreed that a satellite launch was a sovereign right of each country, he said.

Lavrov arrived here on Thursday and will leave for Seoul on Friday. The visit is part of the exchange activities marking the 60th anniversary of the signing of an economic and cultural cooperation agreement between the DPRK and Russia.

The UN Security Council issued a statement on April 13 condemning the DPRK's rocket launch on April 5, which the DPRK claimed had sent a satellite into the orbit.

Pyongyang subsequently announced it was quitting the six-party talks on nuclear disarmament and would restart nuclear facilities in protest of the UN statement. It also expelled observers of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

(Xinhua News Agency April 24, 2009)