Chinese Government Claims There Is Nothing They Can Do To Stop North Korea’s Nuclear Program
As I posted earlier this week, it is business as usual on the Sino-NK border which is something that Secretary of State John Kerry says has to stop. Despite this the Chinese government is claiming there is no “key” for them to use to stop North Korea’s nuclear program. If the border was shutdown this is a key that would greatly pressure the Kim regime to halt their nuclear program:
China said Friday that it holds no “key” to curbing North Korea’s nuclear ambition, while the United States is urging Beijing to put more pressure on Pyongyang after the North’s fourth nuclear test.
The remarks by Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying were seen as a rare public acknowledgment that China’s influence on its unruly ally North Korea is limited.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, during a telephone conservation on Thursday, “There cannot be business as usual” after North Korea claimed it successfully conducted a hydrogen bomb test.
Kerry said he reached the agreement with Wang, after making clear to his Chinese counterpart that the latest nuclear test has proven that Beijing’s approach to the North Korean nuclear issue “has not worked.”
The Wednesday nuclear test by North Korea is viewed as a diplomatic failure by Chinese President Xi Jinping in trying to rein in North Korea.
In response to such a view, Hua said, “I want to emphasize that the origin and frictions of the North Korean nuclear issue do not lie in China. The key of resolving the issue does not lie in China.”
However, Hua repeated that, “China urges the North Korean side to stick to reaffirming its commitment of denuclearization and stop taking actions that make the situation worse.” [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link.
BULL! Cut off the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man’s oil and other luxury supplies he gets across the Chinese border and you would see a lot of change in NK.
But his antics make the Yankees anxious and fun to watch!
China is dealing with a potential financial crisis. They need more stability and less distractions in the region now. If they do go into full crisis, you can be sure they will resort to what all such leaders do, rallying the people to nationalism by blaming all the problems on evil “outsiders.”
If Kim makes China too unhappy, he’ll get the “Pyongyang Flu”. Until then, he’s a useful tool.
This is coming from the same China who is allowing cross-border commerce with NK (as well as patron aid) in blatant disregard the face of UN sanctions? The Kim regime wouldn’t exist at this moment in history if it weren’t for China’s continued support.
Perhaps China could find this “key” to the North Korea problem if the U.S. decided to impose its own economic sanctions against China. I’m sure there are plenty of other countries from which Walmart (and, in fairness, just about every other big box store brand in the U.S.) could buy its merchandise from. Maybe it’s about about time that we boost some other countries’ economies and leave China to continue doing business with the DPRK.
Agree with your idea, Bruce. Tom Friedman might not; but most Americans would…
@5: I don’t see any US leader taking such action against China because of the repercussions that will come back in return such as the financing of so much US debt that China provides. The two economies are so intertwined the US economy will feel major repercussions with any economic conflict with China and I think most people think North Korea isn’t worth taking serious action over, yet.