China pushes military drills freeze to end North Korea stand-off
Beijing says a halt to US-South Korean military exercises in exchange for end to Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme is still best way to help secure peace
China said on Thursday a “dual suspension” proposal to handle North Korea was still the best option, after US President Donald Trump said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping had rejected a “freeze for freeze” agreement.
North Korea’s rapid progress in developing nuclear weapons and missiles has fuelled a surge in regional tensions as United Nations-led sanctions appear to have failed to bite deeply enough to change its behaviour.
China and Russia have proposed that the United States and South Korea stop major military exercises in exchange for North Korea halting its weapons programmes.
Beijing formally calls the idea the “dual suspension” proposal.
Trump said after his return from Asia on Wednesday that he and Xi had agreed that they would not accept a “freeze for freeze” idea, which China’s foreign minister announced in March.