Powerful Earthquake Hits off Far East Coast of Russia, Though No Early Reports of Damage

This photo provided by the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, shows the eruption of the Shiveluch volcano reportedly caused by 7.0-magnitude earthquake about 102 kilometers (63 miles) east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the Kamchatka peninsula, Russia. (IVS FEB RAS via AP)
This photo provided by the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, shows the eruption of the Shiveluch volcano reportedly caused by 7.0-magnitude earthquake about 102 kilometers (63 miles) east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the Kamchatka peninsula, Russia. (IVS FEB RAS via AP)
TT

Powerful Earthquake Hits off Far East Coast of Russia, Though No Early Reports of Damage

This photo provided by the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, shows the eruption of the Shiveluch volcano reportedly caused by 7.0-magnitude earthquake about 102 kilometers (63 miles) east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the Kamchatka peninsula, Russia. (IVS FEB RAS via AP)
This photo provided by the Institute of Volcanology and Seismology of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024, shows the eruption of the Shiveluch volcano reportedly caused by 7.0-magnitude earthquake about 102 kilometers (63 miles) east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the Kamchatka peninsula, Russia. (IVS FEB RAS via AP)

A powerful earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.0 struck in the Pacific off the far eastern coast of Russia near a major naval base early Sunday, but there were no early reports of damage or injuries.

The quake prompted a tsunami warning that was later lifted.

The earthquake occurred 18 miles (29 kilometers) below the surface and its epicenter was about 63 miles (102 kilometers) east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the US Geological Survey said.

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is a port city of more than 181,000 people surrounded by volcanoes and sits across a bay from an important Russian submarine base.

The US National Weather Service's Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu initially warned that hazardous tsunami waves were possible for coasts within 300 miles (480 kilometers) of the earthquake epicenter, but later announced the threat had ended.

The center said minor sea level fluctuations could occur in some coastal areas near the earthquake site for several hours.



North Korea Condemns Ukraine’s Incursion into Russia as Act of Terror

Fortification structures set up not far from the Ukraine-Russia border in the Sumy region near the border with Russia, Ukraine, 17 August 2024 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA)
Fortification structures set up not far from the Ukraine-Russia border in the Sumy region near the border with Russia, Ukraine, 17 August 2024 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA)
TT

North Korea Condemns Ukraine’s Incursion into Russia as Act of Terror

Fortification structures set up not far from the Ukraine-Russia border in the Sumy region near the border with Russia, Ukraine, 17 August 2024 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA)
Fortification structures set up not far from the Ukraine-Russia border in the Sumy region near the border with Russia, Ukraine, 17 August 2024 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA)

North Korea condemned Ukraine's incursion into Russia as an unforgivable act of terror backed by Washington and the West, adding it would always stand with Russia as it seeks to protect its sovereignty, state media said on Sunday.

Ukraine's drive into Russia is a product of the anti-Russia confrontational policy of the United States, which is pushing the situation to the brink of World War Three, KCNA news agency said.

The US handed "astronomical" sums of lethal weapons to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the report said.

"We strongly condemn the armed attack against the Russian territory by the Zelenskiy puppet regime under the control and support of the United States and the West as an unforgivable act of aggression and terror," North Korea's foreign ministry said in a statement, according to KCNA.

North Korea has dramatically upgraded its ties with Russia in the past year with two summit meetings by their leaders who pledged closer cooperation in all areas.

In June, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a pact in Pyongyang on "comprehensive strategic partnership" that included a mutual defense agreement.

South Korea, Ukraine and the United States have accused North Korea of supplying artillery and missiles to Russia for use in its war against Ukraine. North Korea and Russia have denied the allegations.