Chinese envoys at the UN in New York are preparing to face an emergency session of the Security Council amid rising international condemnation after its ally unleashed a fatal barrage on the South Korean island of Yongpyeong that left Beijing suffering collateral damage.
Two marines were killed and 20 others injured, including three civilians, after 200 North Korean shells landed near a military base on the island. South Korea fired 80 rounds into North Korea in return but it is not known if anyone was killed.
It was one of the heaviest exchanges of fire since the Korean armistice was signed 57 years ago.
While the Foreign Ministry expressed concern and urged fresh six-nation talks on North Korea, the US and Russia - China's peers on the council - issued blunter statements. The White House 'strongly condemned' what it described as 'belligerent action' from Pyongyang and Russia's Foreign Minister warned of a 'colossal danger' of tensions degenerating into military conflict.
China played a key role in limiting Security Council action following Pyongyang's fatal torpedoing of a South Korean warship in March, but regional diplomats insist any such push will be harder this time.
'The stakes are even higher now,' one South Korean official warned in Seoul. 'We are urging China to act this time and not simply hide behind its ally. We know they must share our outrage and frustration.'