China calls for North Korea tension to be scaled back

Air China suspends flights to Pyongyang

BEIJING/PYONGYANG: China said on Friday tension over North Korea had to be stopped from reaching an “irreversible and unmanageable stage” as a US aircraft carrier group steamed towards the region amid fears the North may conduct a sixth nuclear weapons test.

China, North Korea’s sole major ally and neighbour which nevertheless opposes its weapons programme, has called for talks leading to the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

“We call on all parties to refrain from provoking and threatening each other, whether in words or actions, and not let the situation get to an irreversible and unmanageable stage,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters in Beijing.

North Korea denounced the United States for bringing “huge nuclear strategic assets” to the region as the Carl Vinson strike group with a flag-ship nuclear-powered aircraft carrier steamed closer, and said it stood ready to strike back.



While Trump has put North Korea on notice that he will not tolerate any more provocation, US officials have said his administration is focusing its strategy on tougher economic sanctions.

China banned all imports of North Korean coal on Feb 26 under UN sanctions, cutting off the North’s most important export, and on Friday, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said national airline Air China was suspending flights to Pyongyang.

It did not say why the flights, which operate on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, were being suspended and Air China could not be reached for comment.

Worry about North Korean aggression has also led to a deterioration of ties between China and South Korea because China objects to the deployment of a US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system in the South.



“It’s not hard to see that ever since the United States and Republic of Korea decided to deploy THAAD, the situation has not become harmonious but has become more tense," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang, said in response to a question about the system.

In Pyongyang, retired soldier Ho Song Chol told Reuters that North Korea would win should there be any conflict with the United States.

“We don’t think about other things, we just live in our belief that we will win as long as our Supreme Leader is with us,” Ho said, referring to Kim Jong Un.

Kang Gil-won, a 26-year-old graduate living in Seoul, said his biggest concern was not North Korea, but finding work in a tough job market.



“There’s no concern that war is going to break out tomorrow,” he told Reuters at a ‘study café’ where many job seekers prepare for interviews.

“Getting a job is a war that I feel in my bones.”

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi discussed Syrian crisis and the situation on the Korean peninsula in a phone call on Friday, Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.

The two ministers also discussed the schedule of bilateral contacts, the ministry said.