After Pyongyang launched ballistic missiles on Friday which it claims could reach the whole US mainland, President Donald Trump on Saturday criticized China for failing to pressure Kim to abandon his missile program.
Trump tweeted that he was very disappointed with China, that Beijing did nothing to ease the mounting nuclear threat posed by Pyongyang. The President said the US will not allow the trend to continue, he added that China could easily resolve the situation but refused to help.
North Korea's missile capability
The North Korean ballistic missile test, Hwasong-14, was the second long-range weapon tested within four weeks.
The first conducted on July 4 indicated that the missile was capable of hitting Alaska.
The official North Korean KCNA news agency said the latest test aims to show Hwasong-14's maximum range of heavier nuclear warhead, saying Washington should consider the launch a serious warning.
Kim Jong Un called the weapons program a valuable asset, which according to the agency cannot be changed or replaced.
Chinese warning
China, a long-standing ally of North Korea, has announced in its statement a ban on missile sanctions and urges Pyongyang to stop taking action Which would escalate tensions in the korean peninsula.
Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry said The UN Security Council has clear rules for North Korea's ballistic missile technology, and China rejects North Korean activities in flagrant disregard to UN resolutions.
The Beijing Declaration confirmed its long-standing view of the Pyongyang nuclear weapons program. But on Saturday night, Trump said China has been tricking the United States. He linked to trade policy with the situation in North Korea and blamed his predecessors for failure to stop Pyongyang from the onset.
China earlier this year proposed that North Korea abandon its nuclear and missile programs in exchange for the U.S.
and South Korea to stops its annual military war game which has increasingly escalated tension in the region that Pyongyang considers as a threat. The Trump administration responded to the test by carrying out war drills by demonstrating US military might which includes missile tests.
Continuing in another trend, the United States sent two B-1 bombers from Anderson's Guam base in a 10-hour trip to the Korean Peninsula for what the US Air Force called a direct response to Pyongyang latest test.
The US B-1 joined the Japanese and South Korean fighters to test the combined options during the mission, the US military said.