China Moves to Cool Korean Tensions
By OWEN FLETCHER
BEIJING—China on Sunday proposed emergency discussions among delegates to the six-party talks to discuss "complicated factors" on the Korean peninsula, as the U.S. and South Korea started a naval drill that has prompted dire warnings of reprisals from North Korea.
The move comes as Beijing engages in high-level diplomacy to try to cool tensions between Pyongyang and Seoul. China's special representative for Korean-peninsula affairs, Wu Dawei, proposed consultations in early December between the heads of the delegations to the stalled nuclear talks, which involve China, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, the U.S. and Russia.
"Although this does not mean the resumption of the six-party talks, we hope it can help create the conditions for the resumption of the six-party talks," Mr. Wu told a press briefing.
His comments came as Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo met South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Sunday. Both countries "believe the current situation on the peninsula is worrying," Mr. Wu said. He reiterated China's opposition to any acts that harm the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula.
Mr. Dai said China "has consistently committed itself to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, as well as promotion for dialogue," and the two sides agreed in the talks to further develop bilateral ties, Xinhua said.
A U.S. aircraft-carrier battle group started large-scale exercises with the South Korean navy in the Yellow Sea Sunday morning, in a show of strength five days after a North Korean artillery attack on a small South Korean island that killed four people. North Korea has condemned the naval drills and warned that if they go ahead, "no one can predict the ensuing consequences."
Mr. Dai arrived in Seoul on Saturday and discussed the situation on the peninsula with South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, China's Foreign Ministry said.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi also discussed the situation by phone Saturday with Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the ministry said.
Mr. Yang said "all sides should exert effort together, push for the situation to cool down as quickly as possible, and earnestly avoid conflict happening again," the ministry said.
He also said he "hopes all sides involved will take a rational and practical attitude, and actively create conditions for resumption of the six-party talks" on North Korea's nuclear program, the ministry said.
Mr. Yang on Friday also met with the North Korean ambassador to China and spoke by phone with South Korea's Mr. Kim and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Choe Tae Bok, chairman of North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly, will visit China from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4 at Mr. Wu's invitation, Xinhua said Sunday.
China on Friday protested the U.S.-South Korean naval drill. "We oppose any party to take any military actions in our exclusive economic zone without permission," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said in a statement. China's stance appeared firmer in July, when officials said they opposed any military exercises in the entire Yellow Sea.
The Global Times, a generally nationalistic Chinese newspaper, said "the Chinese people oppose the U.S. aircraft carrier entering the Yellow Sea, and this opposition is resolute and definitely will not just be oral."
"Judging from the current situation, the act by [South Korea and the U.S.] to fully enhance their military alliance will not help ease the hostile sentiment between North Korea and South Korea, and instead it will only further intensify the tense situation on the Korea peninsula," Xinhua said Sunday.
—Sue Feng and Gordon Fairclough contributed to this article.
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