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China Urging Calm as US Dispatches Naval Might to Korean Waters

China Urging Calm as US Dispatches Naval Might to Korean Waters
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China called for a "peaceful" resolution to tensions on the Korean Peninsula Wednesday, as a United States aircraft carrier strike group churned towards the contested region.

China Urging Calm as US Dispatches Naval Might to Korean Waters

Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed the situation in North Korea and Syria with US President Donald Trump in a telephone call on Wednesday, China's foreign ministry said, in what one analyst described as a "new phase" of China-US relations on North Korea.

"I think at this point the common interest between the US and China outweigh [North Korea saber-rattling]," Alexander Neill," a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Singapore, told CNN.

"China may be prepared to do some sort of tradeoff... They want to rein in Kim Jong Un."

Trump has repeatedly called on China to do more to rein in its unruly neighbor, which has stepped up its missile development and nuclear program since 2016.

The US dispatched the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson after the latest missile test by North Korea last week, drawing a forceful warning from Pyongyang.

The unexpected phone call between the two came after Trump turned to Twitter to vent his frustrations over North Korea.

"I explained to the President of China that a trade deal with the US will be far better for them if they solve the North Korean problem," he tweeted.

"North Korea is looking for trouble. If China decides to help, that would be great. If not, we will solve the problem without them! U.S.A.," he wrote in a second tweet.

According to a statement from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs [MOFA], Xi reiterated that China wants a denuclearized Korean peninsula and called for peace and stability.

"China advocates to resolve the issue through peaceful means, and is willing to maintain communication and coordination with the US on the Korean Peninsula issue," the statement quoted Xi as saying.

The two leaders met for the first time last week at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team

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