Russia says will not veto UN North Korea resolution: Report

Moscow: Russia does not plan to veto a U.N. resolution on North Korea due to be considered later on Friday, the TASS news agency cited Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov as saying.

The U.N. Security Council is expected to vote on Friday on a U.S. and Chinese proposal to blacklist more North Korean individuals and entities after the country`s repeated ballistic missile launches, diplomats said on Thursday.

There was a question mark over whether Russia might veto the resolution after the United States imposed its own sanctions on Thursday on two Russian firms for their support of North Korea`s weapons programmes.

But Gatilov, speaking on the sidelines of an economic forum in St Petersburg, said Moscow would not use its veto.

"We hope that the document will pass," TASS cited Gatilov as saying.