Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a news conference at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, July 5, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS
Tuesday's launch marked a milestone in Pyongyang's decades-long drive for the capability to threaten the US mainland with a nuclear strike, and poses a stark foreign policy challenge for Donald Trump.
Can US defend against North Korea missiles? Not everyone agrees
"We also call on relevant parties to stay calm, exercise restraint, refrain from words and deeds that may heighten tensions, and jointly make effort for the easing of tensions," foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang told reporters.
US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley told the UN Security Council Wednesday that Washington was ready to use force if need be to deal with the threat of a nuclear-armed North Korea and singled out China as key to any diplomatic solution.
Trump urges China to get 'heavy' with North Korea
Her comments came only days after Trump suggested Beijing's efforts had failed.
"We will work with China," Haley said, "but we will not repeat the inadequate approaches of the past that have brought us to this dark day."
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