How Chinese diplomacy can shape US policy on North Korea

Zhang Baohui says Beijing must show Washington that only dialogue with North Korea, coupled with sanctions, will be effective in averting catastrophe

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US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley speaks to UN Chinese Ambassador Liu Jieyi before a Security Council meeting on the situation in North Korea, at the UN headquarters in New York on September 4. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 1:42pm, 14 Sep 2017Updated: 7:09pm, 14 Sep 2017

The world is at a critical juncture after North Korea’s sixth nuclear test. How the international community reacts to the latest provocation from Kim Jong-un will profoundly affect prospects for peace and stability.

While US President Donald Trump seems to have toned down his threat of war, he nonetheless rejects a diplomatic resolution. On August 30, he tweeted that “Talking is not the answer”. Instead, the Trump administration has been pushing for harsher sanctions, including a ban on the sale of oil and refined petroleum products to North Korea.

Even if China, the main supplier of oil to North Korea, supported this package, the international community may not have been able to force Kim to give up his nuclear programme. More likely, by cornering North Korea with truly strangling sanctions, the world may find itself heading towards the abyss of military conflict.

A more promising approach lies in diplomacy and sanctions working in tandem. In this regard, China should use its critical position to shape the world’s course of action. Specifically, Beijing needs to insist on the US committing to dialogue with North Korea as a condition for supporting any more sanctions.

Key points of latest UN sanctions against North Korea

Sanctions, including a ban on the sale of oil, cannot address the root cause of North Korea’s nuclear ambition. Fundamentally, North Korea is no different from other countries; they are all shaped by the same anarchic order of the international system, so-called because it lacks a centralised authority. This anarchic context makes all states insecure, and motivates them to adopt an assuming-the-worst mindset for their security. They tend to exaggerate external threats and are inclined to use all means available to provide for their own security.