U.S. calls on a silent China to use its sway over Russia and North Korea

Chinese President Xi jinping speaks during a meeting with Finnish President Alexander Stubb at the Great Hall of the People on Tuesday. Kazuki Kozaki/Pool Kyodo hide caption

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Kazuki Kozaki/Pool Kyodo

WASHINGTON — The U.S. and South Korea have called on China to use its influence over Russia and North Korea to prevent escalation after Pyongyang sent thousands of troops to Russia to aid Moscow's war against Ukraine. Beijing has so far stayed quiet.

In a rare meeting earlier this week, three top U.S. diplomats met with China's ambassador to the United States to emphasize U.S. concerns and urge China to use its sway with North Korea to try to curtail the cooperation, according to a State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday that the sides had "a robust conversation just this week" and that China knows U.S. expectations are that "they'll use the influence that they have to work to curb these activities."

"But I think this is a demand signal that's coming not just from us, but from countries around the world," he said at a news conference in Washington with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and their South Korean counterparts.

Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said in a statement that China's position on the Ukraine crisis is "consistent and clear."

China strives "for peace talks and political settlement of the Ukraine crisis. This position remains unchanged. China will continue to play a constructive role to this end," Liu said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken speak during an event with Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo on the Economic Benefits of U.S. Travel and Tourism on Tuesday at the State Department in Washington. Kevin Wolf/AP hide caption

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Kevin Wolf/AP

The U.S. says 8,000 North Korean soldiers are in Russia near Ukraine's border and are preparing to help the Kremlin fight against Ukrainian troops in the coming days. China has yet to publicly comment on the move.

Beijing has forged a "no limits" partnership with Moscow, and while it has also been a major ally for Pyongyang, experts say Beijing might not approve of the closer military partnership between Russia and North Korea because it sees it as destabilizing in the region.

The Russia-North Korea partnership runs contrary to Beijing's goal for a peaceful Korean Peninsula, said Shi Yinhong, an international relations expert at China's Renmin University.

Beijing is "aware of the complexity and danger of the situation," Shi said, noting that the "fact that China hasn't said anything yet on the military alliance agreement between North Korea and Russia indicates that China strongly disagrees with it."

Dennis Wilder, senior fellow for the Initiative for U.S.-China Dialogue on global issues at Georgetown University, called Beijing's "radio silence" on North Korea's move "staggering." He said Beijing must find a balance between supporting Moscow and not angering the West, and that Chinese President Xi Jinping might "for his own sake ignore the whole thing."

Xi has built a personal relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and "he cannot see Putin fail," Wilder said this week at a panel discussion hosted by the Washington-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.

At the same time, Xi cannot anger the Europeans and Americans when his country's economy is struggling, Wilder said. "So he's not going to say anything publicly about this," Wilder said.

Victor Cha, Korean chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said at the same panel discussion that for China, "there's probably a combination of a little bit of exasperation, a little bit of panic and a little bit of they don't know what to do with regard to the current situation."

It's unclear if Beijing was informed of Pyongyang's move in advance, Cha said. Beijing also could fret over Russia gaining more influence than China over North Korea, Cha said.

Austin said Thursday that China "should be asking Russia some hard questions at this point and whether it intends to broaden this conflict by this kind of behavior."

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un shake hands during their meeting in Vladivostok, Russia, on April 25, 2019. Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP hide caption

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Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP

Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Dan Kritenbrink and Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs James O'Brien met with Chinese envoy Xie Feng in Washington on Tuesday, according to the State Department official, who would not detail the Chinese response.

Lu Chao, director of the Institute of American and East Asian Studies at Liaoning University in China's northeastern province of Liaoning, said the U.S. should not expect China to manage North Korea.

"It is not the case that China is responsible to manage North Korea and the U.S. is responsible for managing South Korea," Lu said. "I hope the U.S. government could understand China's stance."

Lu also said the troop deployment is "a matter between Russia and North Korea," while China's attitude remains unchanged that the conflict should not be escalated.