A+ A-

US urges China to pressure N. Korea to deescalate regional tension

WASHINGTON, June 21 (KUNA) -- US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis reiterated the need for China to pressure North Korea in order to prevent further regional escalation.
The most acute threat in the region today is posed by the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), Tillerson said at a joint press conference Wednesday after the their Chinese counterparts at the State Department.
"We both call for complete, verifiable and irreversible de-nuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and we call on the DPRK to halt its illegal nuclear weapons program and its ballistic missile tests as stipulated in the UN Security Council resolutions.
"We reaffirmed our commitment to implement in full all relevant UN Security Council resolutions," he said.
"For example, we both agreed that our companies should not do business with any UN-designated North Korean entities in accordance with these resolutions.
"China understands that the United States regards North Korea as our top security threat. We reiterated to China that they have a diplomatic responsibility to exert much greater economic and diplomatic pressure on the regime if they want to prevent further escalation in the region," Tillerson went on.
Whether it is money laundering, extorting Korean expatriates or malicious cyber activity, North Korea has engaged in a number of criminal enterprises that help fund its weapons programs, he said.
"We must step up our efforts to help to curtail these sources of revenue," he added. "Countries around the world and in the UN Security Council are joining in this effort, and we hope China will do their part as well." The US is committed to holding North Korea accountable for multiple violations of UN Security Council resolutions which expressly prohibit its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, Tillerson said.
For his part, Mattis said that during the Diplomatic and Security Dialogue "we affirmed North Korea's nuclear missile program is a threat to peace and security in the Asia Pacific region. "We also affirmed our strong commitment to cooperate, including through the UN, to realize our shared goal of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
"Meanwhile, we will continue to take necessary measures to defend ourselves and our allies," Mattis said.
He noted that the US opposes changes to the status quo of the past through the militarization of outposts in the South China Sea and excessive maritime claims unsupported by international law, "and we uphold the freedom of navigation and overflight." Mattis added that the US and Chinese officials "discussed ways to decrease tension and reduce risk in the South China Sea. As we maintain open dialogue on this topic, the United States will continue to fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows." (end) rm.gb