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Teddy Ng

Zhenhua Lu

Sarah Zheng

Direct talks between the leaders of the United States and North Korea are expected to sideline China in efforts to curb Pyongyang’s nuclear programme, analysts said.
But Chinese state media said on the weekend that Beijing would still play a role in resolving the crisis.
The assessment follows US President Donald Trump’s decision on Friday to accept North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s offer of face-to-face talks on Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme, a proposal that bypassed China, North Korea’s neighbour and biggest trading partner.
Nevertheless it was a decision that Chinese President Xi Jinping praised in a phone call to Trump, with him applauding the US president on his “positive gesture”.
China welcomes Trump-Kim talks, calls for ‘political courage’ on crisis
“We hope that all relevant parties can make positive gestures and refrain from actions that prevent the situation on the Korean peninsula from calming down,” Xi was quoted by state-run broadcaster CCTV as saying.


Trump was quoted as saying that North Korea had sent a positive signal to defuse tensions, and that talks between Washington and Pyongyang would benefit all parties involved.
Xi and Trump also discussed the development of Sino-US relations, and both leaders said the two nations had to properly manage their disputes, CCTV reported.

Timeline: 17 key events that marked rocky road to Kim-Trump summit


Analysts said the agreement to hold talks reflected a slow thaw in ties between the US and North Korea.
At the same time, relations between Pyongyang and Beijing have deteriorated over China’s enforcement of economic sanctions against the reclusive authoritarian regime.
Tong Zhao, from the Carnegie-Tsinghua Centre for Global Policy in Beijing, said China was no longer a central player in the crisis.
“The North Korean nuclear issue no longer requires China’s sanctions on North Korea to push Pyongyang to return to the negotiating table. This time has already passed,” Tong said. “It is now time for the parties directly involved in the conflict – the US, South Korea, and North Korea – to engage directly.”
Beijing is likely to be pleased at plans for direct dialogue between the US and North Korea, given its consistent calls for the crisis to be resolved through diplomacy, according to Fudan University international relations professor Wei Zongyou.
Still, one summit would not be enough to break the stand-off, Wei said.
“The nuclear and missile issues require more protracted talks,” he said. “In this process, China will be an active supporter and promoter of denuclearisation.”
Chinese state media also promoted Beijing as an ongoing actor in the Korean peninsula drama, adding that Xi had “correctly insisted” that the US engage in dialogue with North Korea.
“China will continue its tireless efforts to bring the Korean peninsula situation back on the track of stability and peace, and the nuclear problem back onto the track of dialogue and resolution,” a commentary in state-run People’s Daily argued on Saturday.
While the time and location of the Trump-Xi meeting has not been set, Mongolia has already offered to host, with Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj tweeting that his country is “the most suitable, neutral territory”.
Sanctions on N Korea to stay as South’s leader Moon urges caution

Harry Kazianis, a director for defence studies at the Centre for the National Interest, outlined ways to make sure the upcoming talks would prove meaningful – and not be a trap. 
First, the talks should not take place in North Korea, Kazianis said. Being able to meet Trump on home soil would give the North Korean leader “a huge propaganda win”. 
With Trump to meet Kim, the real games have only just begun
North Korea also should lay out a timeline for giving up its nuclear weapons, he said. 
Next, there must be a common understanding among North Korea and the US’ allies about what an acceptable deal would look like, Kazianis said. 
Finally, Washington and Seoul must continue to hold their pre-planned military exercises, even though Kim had denounced them in the past as acts or war, the director said.
But the prospect of the summit being held in China appears remote.
Renmin University international relations professor Shi Yinhong said China wanted to be involved to a limited degree, to keep “watching with prudence”. But Kim would not want to hold talks in China, particularly after its sanctions on his country.
Wei agreed. “It is very obvious that Kim wants to bypass China, and does not want China to take part,” he said.
Additional reporting by Zhenhua Lu, US correspondent, and Wendy Wu


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US-China relations

Kim-Trump nuclear talks to put China on the outer but Beijing ‘will still be in the game’

Xi Jinping (centre) praised Donald Trump after he agreed to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Photo: AFP

epa06590747 A handout photo made available by the Cheong Wa Dae presidential office shows South Korea's national security adviser Chung Eui-yong (L) meeting US President Donald J. Trump (R) at the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 08 March 2018 (issued 09 March 2018). Chung went to the White House with messages from the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, whom he met in Pyongyang earlier in the week. Kim invited Trump for a direct meeting, and the US president accepted the invitation. According to Chung, Trump said he would meet Kim by May. EPA-EFE/CHEONG WA DAE MEDIA OFFICE / HANDOUT SOUTH KOREA OUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

FILE PHOTO: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches the launch of a Hwasong-12 missile in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on September 16, 2017. KCNA via REUTERS/File Photo ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. NO THIRD PARTY SALES. SOUTH KOREA OUT.

Donald Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un to hold historic face-to-face meeting

After months of trading insults and threats of nuclear annihilation, Donald Trump agreed to meet Kim Jong-un. No American president has ever met with a North Korean leader

South Korea's national security advisor Chung Eui-yong (C) and spy chief Suh Hoon (L) arrive at Incheon airport, west of Seoul, on March 8, 2018 to leave for Washington. Two South Korean envoys left for Washington on March 8, to brief US officials on their landmark visit to Pyongyang and the North's offer to talk about giving up its nuclear arsenal. / AFP PHOTO / YONHAP / - / - South Korea OUT / REPUBLIC OF KOREA OUT NO ARCHIVES RESTRICTED TO SUBSCRIPTION USE

South Korean National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong speaks outside the White House on Thursday, announcing that North Korea’s Kim Jong-un had invited Donald Trump to meet him, and that Trump had accepted. Photo: TNS

China calls for US, North Korea to show ‘political courage’ to ease nuclear tension, welcomes Trump-Kim talks

South Korean national security chief Chung Eui-yong briefs US President Donald Trump about his visit to North Korea, in Washington on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

FILE - In this Aug. 10, 2017, file photo, a man watches a television screen showing U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a news program at the Seoul Train Station in Seoul, South Korea. South Korea's national security director says President Donald Trump has decided he will meet with North Korea's Kim Jong Un "by May." Chung Eui-yong spoke outside the White House, Thursday, March 8, 2018, after a day of briefings with senior U.S. officials, including Trump, on the recent inter-Korea talks. Chung says Trump said "he would meet Kim Jong Un by May to achieve permanent denuclearization" of the Korean peninsula. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

In this March 5, 2018 file photo, provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, front right, meets South Korean National Security Director Chung Eui-yong, front left, in Pyongyang, North Korea. U.S. President Donald Trump accepting a reported offer to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is a stunning turn of events after a year that saw them engage in a heated verbal warfare that included crude insults and mutual threats of nuclear attacks. It remains to be seen whether a summit will take place or lead to a meaningful breakthrough in the nations’ relationship. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File

With Trump to meet Kim, the real Korean games have only just begun

A smiling sister, beautiful cheerleaders and an unprecedented invitation to the US president. It looks rosy, but a shadow hangs over North Korea’s charm offensive

(FILES) In this file photo taken on February 9, 2018 US Vice President Mike Pence (R) and North Korea's Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, attend the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Pyeongchang Stadium. Pence and North Korean officials had planned to meet secretly during the 2018 Winter Olympic Games, but Pyongyang scrapped the talks after the US vice president denounced abuses from the "murderous regime," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement on February 20, 2018. "At the last minute, DPRK officials decided not to go forward with the meeting. We regret their failure to seize this opportunity," she added. / AFP PHOTO / Odd ANDERSEN

A North Korean cheering band attend a welcoming ceremony for North Korea's athletes, at the athletes village of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic games in Gangneung on February 8, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / Ed JONES

Trump and Kim are to meet. Photo: AFP

Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Photo: AFP

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China

Diplomacy

Xi Jinping praises US leader’s ‘positive gesture’ to resolve North Korea crisis


North Korea nuclear crisis

Kim-Trump nuclear talks to put China on the outer but Beijing ‘will still be in the game’

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Xi Jinping praises US leader’s ‘positive gesture’ to resolve North Korea crisis

Xi Jinping praises US leader’s ‘positive gesture’ to resolve North Korea crisis