Chinese leader Xi Jinping has urged Donald Trump to peacefully resolve tensions over North Korea’s nuclear programme, as the US President touted the power of a naval “armada” steaming towards the Korean peninsula.
China’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday the two leaders had spoken by phone, days after Mr Trump sent the aircraft carrier-led strike group to the region in a show of force ahead of a possible nuclear test.
The deployment was followed by a renewed warning that Washington was ready to take on North Korea alone if Beijing declined to help rein in its neighbour’s nuclear ambitions. Pyongyang has issued a defiant response, saying it was ready to fight “any mode of war” chosen by the US and even threatening a nuclear strike against US targets.
The sabre-rattling has unnerved China, which has made clear its frustration with Pyongyang’s stubbornness but whose priority remains preventing any military flare-up that could bring chaos and instability to its doorstep. In the call, Xi stressed that China “advocates resolving the issue through peaceful means”, the foreign ministry said. China has reportedly deployed 1,50,000 troops to the North Korean border to prepare for pre-emptive attacks against North korea.
