US Secretary of State rebuked China over its appeasement of the North Korean regime, which rocked the international community by conducting a surprise nuclear test on Wednesday. Beijing has urged Pyongyang to observe the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
John Kerry told reporters in Washington on Thursday that America “respected” Beijing’s special approach towards North Korea, and in particular sanctions imposed on Pyongyang.
“China had a particular approach that it wanted to make, and we agreed and respected that,” Kerry said following a phone call with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
“Today in my conversation with the Chinese I made it very clear: that has not worked and we cannot continue business as usual,” Kerry said.
Kerry decisively denied a journalist’s allegation that the new North Korean nuclear test was a result of lack of oversight by Washington.
“North Korea has never been left unattended to. Not for one day,” Kerry stressed.
US officials are stressing China should be very worried that Pyongyang never warned Beijing of the upcoming nuclear test, as it did in the previous instances.
Washington thinks that without China’s economic support of Pyongyang, Kim Jong-un’s regime would crumble.
However, instead of committing itself to compromising North Korea’s economy, China has opted to apply pressure on Pyongyang from a different angle.
“China urges North Korea to adhere to denuclearization, to reiterate its commitment to this principle and to refrain from actions that can exacerbate the situation,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Friday, adding that maintaining peace and stability in the region is China’s confirmed position.
“In light of new developments, China will continue to protect the non-proliferation regime and will work with all parties to resolve this issue,” the diplomat said.
Via RT. This piece was reprinted by RINF Alternative News with permission or license.