Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to prevent conflict on the Korean Peninsula, China’s response to North Korea’s increasing military cooperation with Russia, Bloomberg reports.
The statement, made during a meeting with US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the APEC summit, follows reports of significant North Korean military support for Russia in the Ukraine war.
Xi assured Biden that China would not allow “conflict and turmoil” on the peninsula and would not stand idly by if its strategic security and core interests were threatened. However, his comments lacked specifics regarding China’s approach to North Korea’s actions.
The meeting between Xi and Biden precedes the G20 summit in Brazil. Reports indicate that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has deployed over 10,000 troops to the Kursk region of Russia to fight alongside President Vladimir Putin’s forces, alongside shipments of millions of rounds of artillery ammunition and other weapons. President Biden reportedly voiced concerns regarding this troop deployment during his meeting with Xi.
While China has provided support to both Russia and North Korea, Xi has presented Beijing as a neutral actor in the Ukraine conflict. He described China’s approach to the Ukraine war as “fair” and highlighted its pursuit of “shuttle diplomacy” to promote peace.
