China’s dilemma

The earth tremors felt in parts of southern China as a result of North Korea’s most powerful nuclear test to date should finally convince the Beijing government that Kim Jong-un must now be brought to heel. The regime in Pyongyang continues to flout UN resolutions with an impunity that would not be tolerated from any other country.

Bizarrely, critics of Donald Trump are so obsessed with their dislike of the president that they seek to ascribe moral equivalence to the actions of America and North Korea. As Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, observed, routine defensive military manoeuvres conducted by US and South Korean forces are not the same as threatening to use a nuclear weapon against neighbouring countries.

Beijing has supported a ratcheting-up of economic sanctions and has imposed an embargo on the export of some products. But Xi Jinping’s government has stopped short of a total blockade, fearing a humanitarian catastrophe on its southern border that it would need to deal with and not wanting to bring down the regime. The Chinese rely on North Korea as a buffer against capitalist South Korea, who they fear will swallow up the north should Kim fall.

But the rapid arming of North Korea over the past few months must convince Beijing to act more firmly if war in the peninsula is to be avoided. The cost of any conflict would be far greater than the chaos that would ensue if Kim’s regime was toppled. Arguably, the North Koreans are rushing to complete their nuclear programme because they realise Beijing is beginning to tire of their antics. If so, then China needs to act decisively, and soon.