Trump and China: Master diplomat or paper tiger?

The picture above from 2013 shows leader Kim Jong Un ordering strategic rocket forces to be on standby to strike USA and South Korean targets at any time.

Xi’s comments came after Trump tweeted that China should do more on an matter that Washington sees as an increasingly urgent threat, or else the USA would go it alone.

On Thursday, foreign journalists in North Korea said they had been told to prepare for a “big and important event”, although it is unlikely that they would be shown around a facility as sensitive as a nuclear test site or missile base. “It will not make any difference”, the Global Times, an outlet affiliated with the state-run People’s Daily, the paper of the ruling Communist Party, wrote Thursday.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal Wednesday, Trump said he pointed out the United States’ tremendous trade deficit with China, worth hundreds of billions of dollars, which he said can be overlooked if Beijing solves the problem in North Korea. North Korea has threatened that if the US launches a preemptive strike, it will use its nuclear weapons. “This is where the USA and China are in agreement”, the paper noted, “The difference is that Beijing insists on a peaceful solution that does not threaten the regime, while Washington may use force and take extreme measures”.

“The leadership in North Korea has shown absolutely no sign or interest in diplomacy or dialogue with any of the countries involved in this issue”, explained Victor Cha, Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump by telephone on Wednesday, just days after the pair met in the United States, underscoring the level of urgency raised by the North’s suspected upcoming weapons test.

China banned all imports of coal from North Korea in mid-February after Pyongyang’s launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile.

However, the overall trade volume between both countries actually went up 37.4% in the first quarter of 2017, according to Chinese customs officials.

China, which shares a long land border with North Korea, is the reclusive state’s sole major ally and main trading partner. The two then spoke Tuesday in what the White House called a “very productive” phone call.

Saturday marks the 105th birthday of national founder Kim Il Sung, and North Korea has a history of connecting landmark construction projects to important dates.

Another apparent dividend from the summit was that China on Wednesday abstained on a U.N. Security Council vote condemning Syria’s government for a chemical weapons attack last week.

And in another potential sign of closer co-operation with Washington, China, which has vetoed six resolutions on Syria since the civil war began, abstained at a United Nations vote to condemn Syria over the recent chemical attack in Idlib province. This time, Russian Federation alone vetoed the measure. He adds it may not be long before USA shores are within reach.

China opposes even limited USA military action against its ally and neighbor, which risks dragging both sides into a broader conflict and send refugees clambering toward its border. He denied that it was a quid-pro-quo exchange connected to any other issue.

Hours later, Mr. Trump announced he wouldn’t accuse China of keeping its currency artificially low – which helps Chinese trade.

That position is at odds with the facts, as China has been spending down its foreign reserves to prop up the value of the yuan since mid-2014.