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Wednesday July 5, 9:29 PM2ND LD: China urges restrained response to N. Korean missile tests(Kyodo) _ (EDS: UPDATING WITH LI'S PHONE TALKS WITH JAPANESE, S. KOREAN, AUSTRALIAN, U.S. COUNTERPARTS)China on Wednesday said it was "seriously concerned" over tensions caused by North Korea's test-firing of missiles earlier in the day, but urged concerned parties to remain cool-headed. "We are seriously concerned with what had happened," Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said in a press release carried by the official Xinhua News Agency in response to North Korea's launch of seven missiles, one of which was thought to be a long-range Taepodong-2, that landed in the Sea of Japan. Liu urged other governments to remain calm and exercise restraint and to avoid taking actions that would further intensify and complicate the situation, according to Xinhua. Xinhua reported that Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing spoke by telephone Wednesday with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso, South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Ban Ki Moon and Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer to discuss the situation on the Korean Peninsula. In the talks between Li and Aso, the Japanese foreign minister sought China's cooperation to enable the U.N. Security Council to adopt a resolution to censure or impose sanctions on North Korea over the missile launch, Japanese Foreign Ministry officials said. Adoption of a Security Council resolution requires affirmative votes by a minimum of nine countries and no opposition from any of the five permanent members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- which have veto power. Li was quoted as telling Aso that China will continue to hold close consultations, be in contact and cooperate with Japan toward resuming the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions. The talks among the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia have remained deadlocked since the last round was held in November. North Korea refuses to return to the negotiating table due to sanctions the United States imposed on entities suspected of laundering or counterfeiting money for Pyongyang. In his telephone conversation with South Korea's Ban, Li said it is important to handle the North Korean missile launch issue through "negotiation and dialogue," Yonhap News Agency quoted a South Korean Foreign Ministry as saying. "The Chinese foreign minister stressed the need to continue efforts to resume the six-way talks (on North Korea's nuclear program)," the official reportedly said. Australia's Downer earlier Wednesday urged the Chinese to "continue to do everything they can" to persuade the North Koreans not to test missiles and to return to the six-party talks. "China has been trying to persuade them there's nothing to be gained from conducting these tests and they've gone ahead with it anyway, so we just have to keep up the pressure," Downer told reporters. He noted that North Korea depends on China for about half of its international trade and about 70 percent or 80 percent of its aid. "So, at the end of the day they are very dependant on China and China is a country with the leverage." |
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