North Korea tries to promote denuclearization negotiations with the United States to its advantage with the backing of China. China, for its part, seeks to expand the sphere of its influence by utilizing the North as a card by which to check the United States.
Beijing and Pyongyang, thus, share a mutual interest. It is most certain that China's voice over the North Korean nuclear issue will expand. Washington should not fall behind in this regard.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, has held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, during which they confirmed cooperation in working toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Kim's latest China visit is his third in less than three months, an unusual frequency. It can be said this symbolizes an intimate relationship between the countries. The state media of the two countries reported Kim's China visit and the content of their meeting before his return home, a move that broke with convention.
Kim expressed gratitude to China for its help at the June 12 summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, including the provision of a special airplane. Kim showed his view that the United States and his country should proceed with denuclearization in stages, saying, "If the agreement is carried out step by step, it will open a crucial phase for denuclearization."
Pyongyang undeniably seeks to obtain the easing of sanctions and other concessions in return for carrying out steps toward complete denuclearization piecemeal.
While welcoming the U.S.-North Korea dialogue, Xi expressed China's stance of positively supporting the North's position on the denuclearization issue.
Concerning the issue of building peace on the Korean Peninsula, Xi emphasized that China "will play a constructive role." China seems to have the ulterior motive of joining a declaration to end the Korean War and supporting the conclusion of a peace agreement between Washington and Pyongyang.
Roadmap for CVID key
A peace accord, if signed, could even lead to a reduction or pullout of U.S. military forces in South Korea. Caution is needed in regard to China's strategy of prioritizing efforts to ensure a security environment that would be advantageous to its own interest over the achievement of complete denuclearization.
The United States and South Korea have decided to cancel joint military exercises that were set for August, a move reflective of Trump's intention. China might also demand removal of a cutting-edge missile defense system deployed for U.S. forces in South Korea.
The problem is that China has called for reexamination of resolutions adopted by the U.N. Security Council on sanctions against the North.
The Security Council resolutions call on the North for complete abandonment of all of its nuclear weapons and its nuclear development programs. Blowing up a nuclear test site alone is far from being regarded as sufficient. Sanctions should not be eased until the North carries out such steps as dismantling nuclear warheads and relocating nuclear materials outside the country.
Washington and Pyongyang will shortly launch talks among high-ranking officials to put into practice aspects mentioned in the joint statement issued after the Trump-Kim summit. It will be necessary to flesh out an agreement that was described in such an abstract phrase as "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."
To work toward achieving "complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization," the United States should come up with a roadmap as early as possible that sets procedures and deadlines for implementation of individual steps.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, June 22, 2018)
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