China’s foreign ministry urges North Korea to remain calm

Foreign news outlets reported that North Korea destroyed an inter-Korean liaison office in Kaesong on Tuesday, saying that the tensions on the Korean Peninsula is elevating. China’s Foreign Ministry urged the North to control itself, saying, “We want peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula.”

The Associated Press, CNN, The New York Times and Asahi Shimbun quoted the announcement of the South Korean Ministry of Unification to deliver that North Korea blew up a liaison office. Kim Yo Jong, first vice department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, said in a statement, criticizing the South Korean government was not able to stop leaflet drops of North Korean defector groups, the media outlets added.

The Associated Press analyzed that North Korea was expressing its frustration on being unable to resume economic cooperation with the South due to U.S.-led sanctions against North Korea. The New York Times reported that North Korea displayed its anger against the South in a dramatic way after threatening to end the reconciliatory mood between the two Koreas. The Washington Post said Pyongyang’s rhetoric against Seoul has become harsher for the past few weeks and projected that the demolition would drastically increase conflicts. Asahi Shimbun reported that the liaison office symbolized achievements of South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s North Korea policies and thus the destruction was bound to be a heavy blow.

South and North Korea are part of the same nation, and that as a close neighbor, China has always wished for peace and stability on the peninsula, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said in a press briefing. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said in a press conference on Tuesday that his country was continuously cooperating with countries such as the U.S. and South Korea over matters regarding the North, collecting and analyzing necessary information and closely monitoring the situation.


Ga-In Koo comedy9@donga.com