Korean Peninsula draws new focus

Beijing urges calm as US sends carrier group to troubled region

China called for restraint on the Korean Peninsula on Monday after the United States said it had sent a carrier group in a show of force against Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program.

“China has been paying close attention to the development of the situation on the Korean Peninsula. Under the current circumstances, we think all parties should show restraint and not take action that may intensify regional tensions,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday.

During the meeting between President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Florida last week, Hua said, both sides agreed on the goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and reaffirmed that they would continue to carry out UN Security Council resolutions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in a comprehensive way.

“The two sides agreed to keep close communication and coordination regarding the Korean Peninsula issue,” she said at a daily news conference in Beijing.

“China reaffirmed its adherence to denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, maintaining the peace and stability of the peninsula and solving problems through dialogue and coordination,” she said.

Hua said China further explained its “dual-track” approach, which calls for denuclearizing the peninsula while also establishing a path to ensure peace; and the “dual-suspension” proposal, which calls for suspending Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile activities as well as large-scale drills by Washington and Seoul.

“We think China’s proposals are reasonable and objective, and we hope the parties will seriously consider them and make a constructive response,” she said.

Meanwhile, China’s special representative on Korean Peninsula affairs, Wu Dawei, arrived in Seoul on Monday, where he will meet and exchange views with Kim Hong-kyun, who represents the Republic of Korea in the six-party talks to denuclearize the peninsula.

Wang Junsheng, an Asia-Pacific studies researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the US is putting military pressure on the DPRK by sending the carrier strike group there.

“Given the current complicated situation on the peninsula, the Chinese envoy’s trip shows that China is still making mediation efforts to restart the negotiations and achieve peace and stability on the peninsula,” he said.