China airs worry about North Korea after talks

By Chris Buckley
BEIJING (Reuters) - China shares the region's "serious concerns" about a nuclear North Korea, a senior Chinese military officer said after talks with Pentagon officials that also sought to ease friction at sea between the two big powers.
Lieutenant-General Ma Xiaotian did not announce new steps against Pyongyang. But he continued China's recent practice of openly airing worries about its isolated neighbor, which conducted a second nuclear test on May 25, prompting new United Nations sanctions.
"For the regional security of northeast Asia, the North Korean nuclear issue is not only a serious concern for the United States and neighboring South Korea and Japan, but is also for China," Ma told a news conference on Wednesday after the talks with a U.S. delegation led by Under Secretary of Defense Michele Flournoy.
But Ma also repeated China's position that the dispute with North Korea must be defused through negotiations.
"We hope and encourage the relevant parties to take positive steps and more stabilizing measures to control developments on the Korean Peninsula, to address the issues through diplomatic negotiations, consultations and dialogue."
ENFORCING UN SANCTIONS
The United States has ratcheted up the pressure on North Korea, tracking its ships in a bid to deter arms shipments banned under the recent U.N. Security Council resolution.
But Flournoy said she told the Chinese officials that Washington will consult with nations in the region.
"The U.S. assured our Chinese counterparts that we're committed to implementing the U.N. resolution fully, responsibly and in concert with other nations in the region," she told a separate news conference after the talks with Ma.
She and Ma both said their talks did not address the specifics of China's potential role in enforcing the U.N. resolution against North Korea.
Pyongyang, for its part, is showing no signs of trying to defuse regional tensions.
A source in South Korea's Presidential Blue House said the North is now preparing for test launches of a long-range missile and of mid-range missiles, local media reported.
South Korean government sources have said the North could be ready to fire its Taepodong-2 missile, which could reach U.S. territory, in a matter of weeks. It would take far less time to prepare mid-range missiles, which can hit all of South Korea and most of Japan.
AVOIDING SEA INCIDENTS
At the military talks, China and the United States also agreed to hold talks in July to discuss preventing incidents at sea, including ones in which Chinese vessels have jostled U.S. navy ships in waters off China's coast. Continued...
Source: Reuters