China praises new US tone on NK
FM Wang Yi to attend UN Security Council meeting
Beijing on Thursday welcomed an apparently softer tone by the Washington on the North Korean nuclear and missile crisis, according to Chinese foreign ministry.
“We have noted these expressions and the message conveyed in these expressions hoping to resolve the Korean nuclear issue peacefully through dialogue and consultation,” Geng Shuang, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, told a regular press conference.
“We believe this message is positive and should be affirmed.”
The Trump administration said on Wednesday it aimed to push North Korea into dismantling its nuclear and missile programs, which are in violation of UN Security Council resolutions, through tougher international sanctions and diplomatic pressure.
“The US seeks stability and the peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. We remain open to negotiations towards that goal. However, we remain prepared to defend ourselves and our allies,” it said in a statement.
The US stance, which appeared to signal a willingness to exhaust non- military avenues despite repeated warnings that “all options are on the table,” came in a statement following an unusual White House- hosted briefing.
The statement from Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats described North Korea as “an urgent national security threat and top foreign policy priority.”
Tillerson will chair a ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council on Friday that is expected to discuss tougher sanctions, which US officials say could include an oil embargo, banning North Korea’s airline, intercepting cargo ships and punishing Chinese and other foreign banks doing business with Pyongyang.
China has long promoted dialogue to resolve the “Korean nuclear issue” as North Korea has repeatedly threatened to destroy the US which in turn has warned that economic sanctions in ending North Korean provocations.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will attend an open ministerial meeting on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue held by the UN Security Council Friday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Thursday.
Wang said Wednesday that all parties concerned shall implement the resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council concerning North Korea in a comprehensive and complete manner.
“Here I want to emphasize that all the resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council concerning the DPRK so far have, as always, included two aspects – opposing Pyongyang to have nuclear weapons and taking measures to deter its nuclear and missile activities on the one hand, and on the other, highlighting the peaceful settlement of the issue by avoiding the actions that may aggravate tensions and resuming the sixparty talks as early as possible,” he said.