SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – America’s top diplomat pressured China on Thursday to use his “tremendous influence” to convince North Korea to abandon its nuclear program, hours after the North said it would ignore the US offers to resume negotiations.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke at the end of the high-level security talks in Seoul, which included Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and South Korea’s Foreign and Defense Ministers. The so-called “two plus two” meeting ”, The first of its kind in five years, came at a time when President Joe Biden is pushing to restore America’s alliances in Asia in the face of growing challenges from China and North Korea.
“Beijing has an interest, a clear self-interest, in helping to seek the denuclearization of (North Korea) because it is a source of instability. It is a source of danger and obviously a threat to us and our partners, ”said Blinken at a news conference.
He said Beijing had “a critical role to play” in persuading North Korea to denuclearize because most of the North’s foreign trade goes through China. Blinken emphasized that China is required by UN Security Council resolutions to fully enforce sanctions imposed on nuclear and missile tests banned by North Korea.
On Thursday, Choe Son Hui, North Korea’s first deputy foreign minister, confirmed Blinken’s previous announcement that Washington had contacted Pyongyang through various channels since mid-February, but received no response.
Choe called the US reach a “delaying trick” and said North Korea would continue to discard similar offers of negotiations unless Washington withdraws its hostility. “What has been heard from the US since the new regime emerged is just a whimsical ‘North Korea threat’ theory and baseless rhetoric about ‘complete denuclearization,'” she said.
Choe suggested that Washington’s efforts to impose additional sanctions and increase pressure on North Korea, along with this month’s US-South Korea military exercises, are proof of US hostility.
Asked about Choe’s statement, Blinken said he was aware, but said he was more interested in the comments and thoughts of US allies and partners while taking a regional trip.
US-led diplomacy with a focus on North Korea’s nuclear weapons remains paralyzed for about two years because of disputes over US-led sanctions. Experts are debating whether the United States and its allies should reach an agreement that would freeze North Korea’s nuclear activities in exchange for relaxing sanctions to prevent its arsenal from growing.
Earlier this week, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un warned the United States to “refrain from causing a bad smell”, while criticizing the US-South Korea exercises that his government sees as an invasion essay.
Some experts say North Korea, which is eager to get sanctions eased, may increase animosities with missile tests to increase its influence in any negotiations with the United States. North Korea’s dying economy is under additional pressure because of the pandemic-related border closure, which significantly reduced its foreign trade and a wave of natural disasters last summer.
After Thursday’s talks, Blinken, Austin and their South Korean colleagues said in a joint statement that North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile issues are “a priority for the alliance” and reaffirmed a shared commitment to address these questions. Both Bliken and Austin said the allies remain committed to the denuclearization of North Korea.
Austin said the United States is fully committed to defending South Korea, using “the full range of U.S. capabilities, including our expanded deterrence”. He said the allies continue to maintain “a robust combined defense stance”.
Blinken criticized North Korea’s human rights record for the second consecutive day, saying that people in North Korea “continue to suffer widespread and systematic abuse at the hands of a repressive government”.
Blinken and Austin are on their first trip abroad for office-level employees since Biden took office in January. They visited Japan before coming to Seoul.
Blinken said Thursday’s talks discussed China’s role, and “we are aware of Beijing’s consistent failure to deliver on its commitments”.
“And we talked about how Beijing’s aggressive and authoritarian behavior is challenging the stability and prosperity of security in the Pacific region,” he said. “Beijing’s actions make the establishment of a common approach among our allies even more important at a time when we are witnessing a setback in democracy and human rights worldwide, including in Burma.”
Blinken will meet with senior Chinese officials in Anchorage, Alaska, on the way back to Washington, while Austin will travel to New Delhi for talks with Indian officials.
China’s ambassador to the United States, Cui Tiankai, said Beijing does not expect the Alaskan talks to resolve all issues between China and the United States and “we do not have high hopes”. Cu also added that he hopes that the meeting will be “a start and that both sides can start a process of dialogue that is sincere, constructive and realistic”.