Putin said negotiations should resume.
"I think one of the reasons [why North Korea conducted a nuclear weapon test] is that not all parties in the negotiation process were able to find the right tone for conducting these negotiations," Putin said. "You must never drive the situation into an impasse and never push one of the parties in a situation from which it can find no way out other than exacerbating the situation."
He said North Korea has sent "signals" that it is ready to return to six-party talks. The negotiations are aimed at stopping the communist north's nuclear-weapons program.
Putin made the comments today in answering questions from Russian citizens in a live session being broadcast on national television networks and radio stations.
