China explains the veto is to… prevent North Korea from testing nuclear

Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Zhang Jun – Photo: REUTERS

In an interview with Reuters news agency on June 9, Ambassador Zhang Jun emphasized the denuclearization of the peninsula. North Korea is a target of Beijing and it “doesn’t want another nuclear test”.

Over the past few weeks, the United States has repeatedly warned North Korea is about to test nuclear weapons after ballistic missile launches. Washington and its allies have also sought to increase pressure on Pyongyang by pushing for additional sanctions at the UN Security Council.

Such an effort was rejected by Russia and China two weeks ago, marking the first time since 2006 that the Security Council has failed to agree on sanctions on North Korea.

On June 8, during a session of the United Nations General Assembly, the US representative had a quarrel with the representatives of Russia and China over the fact that the two countries vetoed a proposal to punish Pyongyang.

According to Ambassador Zhang, Beijing has reason to veto the proposal and believes this is to prevent Pyongyang from testing nuclear weapons, not to tolerate North Korea.

“Only through dialogue will we see the situation improve,” Zhang said. “Our basic position is very clear, which is that sanctions do not solve the problem.”

In the past few years, especially after the outbreak of COVID-19, China has asked the UN to ease sanctions on North Korea for humanitarian reasons.

Zhang urged Washington to ease unilateral sanctions on North Korea and end joint military exercises with South Korea to revive talks with Pyongyang. In response, the United States said it had repeatedly contacted North Korea but received no response from Pyongyang.

Restarting talks between North Korea and the United States, according to Zhang, is not “mission impossible”.

“The United States is the number one superpower in the world, so if it wants to enter into dialogue with any country, it’s not a difficult thing. North Korea will make its own decision and we are always ready to support it,” he said. for a dialogue effort,” Zhang reiterated China’s position.