China says resurfacing tensions on Korean peninsula regrettable
After failing to mediate in Pyongyang, Beijing now likely to focus on crisis management, expert says
After two months of relative calm, the resurfacing of tensions on the Korean peninsula was regrettable, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday.
Speaking at a joint briefing with his Mongolian counterpart Damdin Tsogtbaatar, who was on a visit to Beijing, Wang’s public display of frustration came in response to Pyongyang conducting its latest missile test just days after China had sent an envoy to the reclusive country. It also coincided with the largest ever drill held between the United States and South Korea.
“After two months of relative quiet, tensions on the Korean Peninsula have increased again. It is a regret the parties involved failed to seize the opportunity despite China’s appeals,” he said.
“China has always been open-minded to new propositions to resolve the issue, however, the stipulations and spirit of UN Security Council resolutions should be a common principle for all parties to follow,” Wang said, adding that the resolutions represented the common will of the international community.
Wang Sheng, a specialist in North Korean affairs at northeastern China’s Jilin University, said that after failing to successfully mediate in Pyongyang, Beijing was likely to focus its attention on crisis management on the Korean peninsula.