North Korea said it will work with China on regional peace and stability as a senior delegation visited Beijing, and Pyongyang carried out its latest intercontinental ballistic missile launch.
North Korean deputy foreign minister Pak Myong-ho told top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi on Monday his country would continue to deepen ties with China to “safeguard common interests” hours after it launched its fifth ICBM this year amid heightening tensions with the US and its allies.
“The DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] will continue to strengthen multilateral cooperation with China to safeguard common interests and maintain regional peace and stability,” Pak said, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
Monday’s launch, which came after another short-range missile launch on Sunday, marked the most North Korean ICBM launches in a single year, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap.
It was an apparent response to closer military coordination between South Korea and the US as the two agreed during a consultation meeting on Friday to issue joint guidelines on nuclear defense strategies and include nuclear operation exercises in next year’s military drills.
In a statement responding to the US-South Korea meeting on Sunday, the North Korean defense ministry said it was “an open declaration on nuclear confrontation to make … use of nuclear weapons against the DPRK” and threatened “pre-emptive and deadly counteraction” in response, according to North Korea’s state news agency KCNA.
The US, Japan and South Korea all condemned North Korea’s latest launches. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol called for a trilateral response to use a real-time missile information sharing system, which was agreed on at the three nations’ Camp David summit in August and was planned to be launched by the end of the year.
In the Chinese statement, Wang said China and North Korea would always “firmly support and trust each other” in the face of “turbulent international situations”.
“China has always viewed China-DPRK relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, and is willing to work with the DPRK to strengthen communication and coordination, deepen exchanges and cooperation in various fields,” Wang said.
The meeting on Monday followed diplomatic consultation between the two nations on Friday, led by Pak and his Chinese counterpart Sun Weidong. The two agreed to increase strategic communication in the lead-up to the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties next year.
Pak was the first and most senior North Korean official to visit China after the Covid-19 pandemic as the two countries resumed diplomatic engagement in recent months.
China has repeatedly been urged to use its influence on North Korea, which depends economically on Beijing and has ramped up military aggression as the US and South Korea expanded their defense cooperation.
Beijing rejected new economic sanctions on North Korea, saying it would not help solve the issue. It called for a “dual suspension” approach that would require North Korea to freeze its missile and nuclear program and South Korea and the US to halt joint military exercises.
In a foreign minister meeting between China, Japan and South Korea last month, Wang condemned “bloc-based cooperation” and urged necessary conditions be created to resume nuclear talks with North Korea, adding that China would continue to play a “constructive role” in de-escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula.
Asked about North Korea’s latest launches on Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin urged the relevant parties to show “practical actions” to solve problems through dialogue.
“Trying to solve the problem through military deterrence and pressure will not work. It will only be counterproductive, further intensifying conflicts and escalating tensions,” Wang said. (SCMP)
