"I do not think that this meeting will be the last. The problem is a difficult one, and several years of mutual mistrust is slowing down the solution of the problem," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters on the sidelines of a regional summit in the capital of Uzbekistan.

"We are not expecting a breakthrough at this meeting, but it is important to keep this format and advance passionately toward our joint objective," he said.

The third round of negotiation on North Korea's nuclear standoff with the United States will begin in Beijing on June 23.

The previous two rounds have only ended with agreements to continue the talks and Pyongyang pressing ahead with its nuclear program.

Russia remains one of the few nations that has access to North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, with Russian President Vladimir Putin having met him three times since his own election in 2000.

Lavrov is expected to visit both North and South Korea in early July.

The six-nation negotiations involve the two Koreas, Russia, China, Japan, and the United States.

Russia has tried to act as a neutral mediator between North Korea and the United States in their nuclear weapons dispute, although its role has been overshadowed by that of China.

WAR.WIRE