Chinese President Xi Jinping (2nd right) and wife Peng Liyuan (right) are seen with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol Ju in Beijing on March 27. The North Korean leader received a warm welcome during a secretive trip as both sides sought to repair frayed ties ahead of landmark summits with Seoul and Washington. Photo: AFP/ via North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency.
Xuan Loc Doan, Asia Times: China’s contradictions over the Korean Peninsula issue
Commenting about Kim Jong-un’s “surprise” trip to Beijing in March, a scholar of international relations remarked, “Next time the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the real issue is between the US and North Korea, and that China is just a mediator or just wants stability, we will know they are lying.”
Indeed, a look at China’s recent statements and actions with regard to North Korea and the Korean Peninsula issue reveals that Beijing is now saying and doing the opposite of what it previously publicly stated.
At a United Nations Security Council meeting on North Korea in April 2017, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi blatantly asserted that his country “is not a focal point in the Peninsula issue” and, thus, the key to solving the problem “does not lie in [its] hands.”
Read more ....
WNU Editor: Beijing has been to slow to respond to yesterday's North Korean announcement that they were suspending talks with South Korea and that they may not meet President Trump in Singapore next month. The Chinese foreign office issued this statement .... China urges North Korea to proceed Trump summit amid threats (ABC News/AP), while Chinese President Xi avoided any mention of a possible suspension in talks .... China's Xi says supports North Korea efforts to develop economy (Reuters).
Update: President Xi is stepping up .... Xi shows support for US-North Korea dialogue (NHK).
