05 June 2017

News Story: China calls for diplomatic efforts to solve nuclear crisis on Korean Peninsula

by Xinhua writers Wang Lili, Geng Xuepeng

SINGAPORE, June 4 (Xinhua) -- The relevant parties at the 16th Shangri-La Dialogue, particularly China, here on Sunday urged the adoption of diplomatic means instead of military or economic punishment to finally solve the nuclear threat on the Korean Peninsula.

The crux of the nuclear crisis is Washington and Pyongyang's mistrust to each other, pointed out He Lei, head of the Chinese delegation to the dialogue who also serves as vice president of the Academy of Military Science of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA).

The United States should become more open-minded and exert more wisdom in dealing with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), he suggested.

According to Koh Chin Yee, CEO of the Singapore-based Longus Institute for Development and Strategy, the two adversaries continuously increase their chips to intimidate each other before finally threading on each other's bottom lines.

At the invitation of the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) that initiated the event, U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis delivered a speech Saturday, saying that Pyongyang constituted the most urgent and dangerous threat to the region.

The Trump administration has made it clear on several recent occasions that the United States is losing "strategic patience" and all options are on the table, indicating that the largest military power in the world might resort to the use of force in dealing with his long-time rival. America's recent military attacks on Syria and Afghanistan were interpreted as a strong warning against the disobedient Asian country.

Read the full story at Xinhua