Against the backdrop of ongoing tensions on the Korean Peninsula recently, the UN Security Council held a public meeting on the North Korean nuclear issue on June 28. According to a live video released by the global network, in just six minutes, Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, spoke out three times, accurately countering the groundless accusations made by the United States against China.
Geng Shuang, Deputy Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations
First of all, Geng Shuang stressed why the current situation on the Korean Peninsula continues to be tense, and the US side should deeply reflect on what it has done. Second, China has the right to independently decide its policies and positions on the Korean Peninsula issue, and does not need the US side to tell us how to do it. Finally, Geng Shuang also advised the US side to change its old mistakes and not always habitually blame others for the problem and try to shift the blame.
After countering the perfect side, Ambassador Geng Shuang also proposed a "solution" for how to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, that is, to establish a peaceful settlement mechanism on the Peninsula and realize the evolution from a "truce mechanism" to a "peace mechanism", especially the US side should get rid of the myth of deterrence and pressure, show its sincerity in unconditional dialogue with concrete actions, and restore mutual trust between the United States and the DPRK.
The root cause of the tense situation on the Korean Peninsula lies in the lack of mutual trust between the United States and the DPRK and the lack of a peace mechanism. However, in the face of China's prescription, the US side chose to "pretend to be deaf and dumb".
Robert Wood, Deputy Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations
After Ambassador Geng Shuang's speech, Robert Wood, deputy permanent representative of the United States to the United Nations, immediately began to defend himself, saying that he did not mention the influence of the United States on the situation on the peninsula, but pointed the finger at Russian-DPRK relations and demanded that China "exert influence" on Russia and the DPRK in order to prevent the latter's cooperation in the military field from "causing damage" to the situation on the peninsula.
This is a typical concept of reverse cause and effect, stealing and changing. Let's take a look at what the United States has done around the peninsula in the past period. After the Biden administration took office, it changed the Trump-era policy of détente with North Korea and immediately strengthened Pyongyang's all-round deterrence, including economic blockade and military intimidation.
Since 2022, the United States and South Korea have conducted dozens of joint military exercises around the peninsula, which have greatly exacerbated North Korea's sense of insecurity and forced the latter to take tough measures, such as missile tests.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden
As far as the United States is concerned, deterrence of the DPRK is only a means, containing China is the ultimate goal, and the peace and stability of the situation on the peninsula is directly related to the security of China's external development environment.
As for North Korea, it is economically subject to a joint blockade by the United States and the West, and militarily it is facing persecution from the United States and South Korea, and it urgently needs to seek more support in the international community. So in recent years, in addition to maintaining a high level of diplomacy with China, North Korea has also strengthened its interaction with Russia.
In October last year, North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong-un visited Russia on a special train, where he not only met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but also visited Russia's space launch site. Shortly after Kim Jong-un returned from his visit, North Korea successfully launched its first military reconnaissance satellite into space, making the United States and South Korea nervous because it meant that North Korea's missiles would have more accurate strike capabilities.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un
In June this year, Russian President Putin paid a return visit to the DPRK, and the two sides not only signed the "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty" but also agreed to deepen military-technical cooperation.
On the one hand, with the help of North Korea, the pressure on Russia on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine will be eased, and it will be able to free up its hands to deal with Asia-Pacific affairs; On the other hand, with Russia's "backing," the DPRK is more confident to deal with military intimidation by the United States and South Korea.
All of a sudden, the two strategic layouts of the United States in Asia and Europe have been broken, and it is precisely because of this that the United States has turned its gun and attacked China, demanding that China "exert its influence" to restrict military cooperation between Russia and the DPRK.
Commemorative sign of the Sino-Russian-DPRK border
As far as China is concerned, Russia and the DPRK are both our partners, and they are also sovereign states, which have the right to independently decide their own foreign policy, and we will not interfere.
At the same time, China's position on the situation on the Korean Peninsula is clear, and we have always contributed our efforts to maintain peace and stability in the region.
If the US is genuinely concerned about peace on the Korean Peninsula, it should take concrete actions to fulfill its commitment to be willing to engage in unconditional dialogue and stop all military pressure on the DPRK.