Senior diplomats from Japan, the US and South Korea have issued a joint statement condemning a new treaty between Russia and North Korea that strengthens bilateral military cooperation.

The joint statement came in response to the summit held between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un last week.

It was issued by Namazu Hiroyuki, who heads the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, Jung Pak, US Senior Official for North Korea, and Cho Koo-rae, South Korean vice foreign minister, who held phone talks on Monday.

The statement says the new treaty that expands military cooperation between North Korea and Russia should be of "grave concern."

It condemns in the strongest possible terms the arms transfers from North Korea to Russia, saying they violate multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions and threaten stability in both Northeast Asia and Europe.

The envoys reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening cooperation in the diplomatic and security fronts to counter the threats posed by the North to regional and international security, and to prevent the situation from escalating.