Russia has urged North Korea to halt its uranium enrichment program and re-admit United Nations nuclear monitors to pave the way for international disarmament talks.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday that consistent implementation of the uranium program in North Korea cannot but create serious worry. It called on Pyongyang to announce a moratorium on all of its nuclear activities including the uranium enrichment program.

Moscow is also urging its communist neighbor to invite inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency to examine its nuclear program and verify that it is purely peaceful.

The call comes after North Korea Wednesday announced progress in producing enriched uranium for its light-water nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon nuclear facility.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on North Korea Wednesday to take concrete steps to abandon its nuclear program and promote peace and stability.

Clinton made her remark during a visit to the South Korean city of Busan. She also reaffirmed U.S. support for its ally.

North Korea unveiled its uranium enrichment program a year ago and said it would be used to produce electricity.

Russia is a party to six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear disarmament, which, in addition to the two Koreas, also include the United States, China and Japan. The last round of talks in 2008 in China ended in an impasse over how North Korea's nuclear disarmament would be verified. Pyongyang expelled the United Nations from North Korea the following year and conducted its second nuclear test.