Chinese President Xi Jinping during a telephone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday called for restraint, amid escalating threats between President Trump and North Korea.
In a statement, Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry said President Xi made it clear during the call that he was demanding both sides to calm down the heated rhetoric and maintained that diplomacy remains important.
The Ministry said the Chinese President stressed the need for both parties to maintain restraint and desist from utterances and actions that could heighten tensions in the region.
Heated rhetoric
Tension escalated on Tuesday, When the U.S. President indirectly threatened nuclear war on Pyongyang, saying North Korea would be confronted with “fire and fury” if it continued to take actions that threaten the United States or its allies.
Trump’s rhetoric comes on the heels of U.S. intelligence experts’ assessment that Pyongyang had developed a miniaturized nuclear warhead. In July, North Korea test-fired two intercontinental ballistic missiles that were greeted with international condemnation and a wider United Nations Security Council sanctions. Experts say with the success of the North’s ICBM launch, it could actually carry out a nuclear strike on the U.S. mainland.
The threats of war
After Pyongyang released details of its plan to carry out a strike off the coast of the tiny Pacific island of Guam which is a U.S. territory, Trump appeared to be fiercer in his rhetoric when on Thursday he said the U.S. military is “locked and loaded” if Pyongyang continues acting in a way that threats the United States, its territories or allies.
Also, on Friday, Trump said that Kim Jong Un “will truly regret it and he will regret it fast” if he orders a provocative or attack the Pacific island of Guam or any of any of U.S. ally. Guam has a population of about 163,000 people and a U.S. military installation.
However, Trump also urges for a peaceful resolution to the crisis.
He said no one loves a peaceful solution more than him, but also warns that there could also be a bad solution.
Japan has recently deployed a missile interception system to four strategic locations. The land based defense system is known as a PAC-3.
Russia also increased its air defense system in the region. Meanwhile, on Friday, South Korea urged the military to “maintain full readiness” to match action with full force should North Korea strike.
