china has warned of a possible head-on collision between the US and North Korea over mounting tension surrounding the North’s recent launch of four ballistic missiles off the coast of Japan.
Chinese warning
Chinese Foreign Minister Wangi Yi has cautioned the United States against the deployment of missile defense system in South Korea, which has increased tension in the region. China is totally against the deployment of the system. He also called on Pyongyang to halt its nuclear program.
China’s state news agency Xinhua has earlier reported that the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area in South Korea is capable of stirring up an “arms race” in the region.
The more missile shields from each side being deployed brings more nuclear ammunitions of the opposing side that is capable of breaking through the missile shield, the report said.
Call for restraint
Wang has called on the United States and South Korea to suspend its joint military drill held annually to ease tension in the region. In so doing, it would allow Pyongyang to discontinue its nuclear weapons program. Nuclear weapons can never bring the desired peace in the region, the use of force is no option to peace, he added.
He said that China was playing its part by giving an early warning to avoid a potential destructive collision in the region.
Wang’s warning was made a day after the US revealed that the controversial defense system had been deployed in South Korea.
The US military said that the Missile Defense System was deployed to deter North Korean aggression.
East Asia tour
Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is billed to visit the region for discussions next week. Tillerson will arrive in Tokyo, Japan on March 15, Seoul, and finally in Beijing on March 18. This will be his first official trip to East Asia since he was sworn in.
Secretary of Defense James Mattis was the first official in the Trump administration to visit the region. He visited Japan and South Korea in early February and re-stated the US commitment to regional ties.
