China’s Xi urges France’s ­Macron in phone call to help restart talks with North Korea

President Xi Jinping yesterday urged his French counterpart ­Emmanuel Macron to help restart negotiations with North Korea, as leading UN members consider a new round of sanctions against Pyongyang.

Xi’s telephone conversation with Macron was the latest ­between the leader of China and other world powers. US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke on the phone with Xi on Thursday and Wednesday respectively,­ state news agency Xinhua said.

In his talk with Macron, Xi called on France to play a ­“constructive role” in lowering tensions and resuming dialogue with North Korea.

“The multiple calls just show how the Korean peninsular problem is of top concern among the world’s biggest powers and how high risk the security threat is,” said Shi Yinhong, an adviser to China’s State Council and director of the Centre for American Studies at Renmin University.

“Every major power involved in this conflict has shown a pretty clear stance except China, and therefore China’s inclination is really important,” he said.

The series of phone calls came after North Korea conducted its latest and largest nuclear weapon test on Sunday, which prompted an emergency follow-up meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday.