China reaffirms balanced way to solve Korea nuclear issue

BEIJING, Feb. 17 -- China on Wednesday urged all parties involved in the Korean nuclear issue to resume talks amid looming UN sanctions against Pyongyang for missile launch.

The UN Security Council was discussing a new resolution with aims to prevent the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) from "going too far on a wrong path," said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

However, all parties should not give up the efforts to resume talks, as well as the responsibility to maintain the peace on the Korean Peninsula, Wang said while speaking at a joint press briefing after his talks with visiting Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.

Pyongyang launched a satellite-carrying rocket on Feb. 7, which was seen as a cover for a long-range ballistic missile, after conducting its fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6.

Under UN Security Council resolutions, the DPRK is banned from firing any kind of ballistic missile.

The DPRK should "pay the price" for repeatedly violating the UN Security Council resolutions, Wang said.

Wang compared the Korean nuclear issue with the Iran nuclear deal, saying the long suspension of the six-party talks on the Korean nuclear issue resulted in a situation that "no one wants to see."

Therefore, all parties should consider the resumption of talks while discussing a new UN Security Council resolution, he said.

He said the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and a truce-to-peace mechanism should be pursued at the same time to solve the major concerns of all parties in a balanced way, while defining a target for the negotiation.

"This is reasonable and will help us find a thorough solution. China is ready to have further discussion with all sides," Wang said.

Wang reiterated that sanctions and military means were not solutions, but only exacerbate the situation. The Chinese government always supports a political solution, in accordance with the UN Charter to peacefully solve disputes, which is in the common interest of the parties concerned and the international community.

Bishop is paying an official visit from Tuesday to Thursday at the invitation of Wang. She also attended the third round of bilateral diplomatic and strategic dialogue.