China deflects accusations on trade, North Korea
In a response to Trump tweets, official says U.S. is at fault for unrest in region
China hit back Monday after a Twitter rant from President Trump over trade and the North Korea crisis, saying the two issues should not be linked and the United States is to blame for Pyongyang’s military buildup.
“We think the North Korea nuclear issue and China-U.S. trade ... are in two completely different domains,” Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Qian Keming said at a news conference in Beijing. “They aren’t related. They should not be discussed together.”
Qian said trade between China and the United States benefits both nations despite a U.S. trade deficit with China that reached almost $350 billion last year.
China’s state-run news agency Xinhua published an editorial Monday saying China is “actively working with the U.S. side to explore ways to restore the trade balance.” It blamed the North Korea nuclear standoff on “decades-long animosity” between Pyongyang and Washington.
“As a neighbor of (North Korea), China knows well it has a lot to lose if the Korean Peninsula slides further away from denuclearization,” the editorial said. “So it has been making strenuous efforts ... to maintain the fragile calm on the peninsula and work toward an early solution to the problem.”
Trump repeatedly has said China could easily pressure North Korea into curtailing its missile and nuclear programs. He raised the question again in tweets Saturday.
“I am very disappointed in China,” Trump said to open a twotweet lament. “Our foolish past leaders have allowed them to make hundreds of billions of dollars a year in trade, yet ... they do NOTHING for us with North Korea, just talk. We will no longer allow this to continue. China could easily solve this problem!”
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said last week that his nation’s recent missiles tests prove he has the technology to hit the U.S. mainland. Some U.S. analysts concurred that Los Angeles and Chicago appear to be technically within range of the North’s missiles.
China continues to trade with North Korea but says it follows United Nations sanctions aimed at pressuring Pyongyang to back off its military buildup.
It has rejected additional U.S. sanctions, saying the standoff must be resolved through dialogue.
Japan sided with Trump. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Sunday that he was disappointed in China’s response to North Korea’s latest tests and agreed with Trump that China must apply more pressure on North Korea.
Karl Dewey, an analyst for Jane’s by IHS Markit, said China has political reasons not to turn its back on the North.
“Ultimately, it remains in Beijing ’s interests to support North Korea economically,” Dewey said. “A unified peninsula under Seoul’s leadership creates a major U.S. ally on China’s doorstep.”
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed with Trump that China must apply more pressure on North Korea.