US Secretary of State John Kerry rebuked China over its appeasement of North Korea, which rocked the worldwide community by conducting a nuclear test Wednesday.
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It stands to reason that Pyongyang’s “successful test” qualifies as an “abnormal case”, since not only is Seoul prepped to resume its propaganda campaign, but also has it’s military in a state of “full readiness”.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also agreed to impose harsher penalties on Pyongyang after talks with Obama.
In South Korea, the mood was uncompromising, with President Park Geun-Hye calling for a strong worldwide response to what she called a “grave provocation”. “We know that responding in this way is simply rising to the bait North Korea is presenting to us”.
“China should not follow the United States”, the source said, referring to the USA demand that North Korea give up its nuclear programme before any negotiations.
The United States and South Korea are limited in their military response.
In retaliation for the test, South Korea on Friday unleashed a ear-splitting propaganda barrage over its border with the North. The last time South Korea deployed the loudspeakers, in August 2015, it triggered an exchange of artillery fire.
But, we have to be bigger than the North Koreans and I would urge South Korea and other like-minded countries in the region to exercise restraint.
“We are anxious about how things are developing”, the spokeswoman, Hua Chunying, told a briefing.
The U.S.is asking China to not only support more robust action at the United Nations, but to apply its own unilateral economic pressure, as North Korea’s largest benefactor.
The U.N. Security Council, whose previous sanctions have failed to dissuade North Korea from its nuclear ambitions, is considering what more it can do; efforts to further restrict the country’s economy by cracking down further on its worldwide trade and banking links seem likely, along with better enforcement of the existing measures.
On Wednesday, the White House said it has not revised its assessment of North Korea’s military capabilities.
The loudspeaker broadcasts will start today, believed to be the birthday of young North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. “Of course they cheated on that agreement, so we made the wrong move”, he told CNN, calling for a similar approach on sanctions again to restrict the North’s ability to fund its weapons programs.
The impoverished state boasts of its military might to project strength globally but also plays up the need to defend itself from external threats as a way to maintain control domestically, analysts say.
Asked if he thinks it is time for China to get tough with North Korea, Kerry said, “It’s time for everybody to make sure that this does not continue as business as usual”.
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If confirmed, North Korea’s test this week would be its fourth overall nuclear test, and potentially its first hydrogen bomb test.
