Chinese
air force land-attack, cruise-missile-capable bombers were put “on high alert”
on Wednesday as the US sees evidence that the Chinese military is preparing to
respond to a potential situation in North Korea, a US defense official tells
CNN.
The
official said the US has also seen an extraordinary number of Chinese military
aircraft being brought up to full readiness through intensified maintenance.
These
recent steps by the Chinese are assessed as part of an effort to “reduce the
time to react to a North Korea contingency,” the official said
Such a
contingency could include the risk of an armed conflict breaking out as
tensions on the peninsula have increased in the wake of multiple North Korean
missile tests.
The US
and Pyongyang have ratcheted up their rhetoric, with the latter’s state media
warning Thursday that a pre-emptive strike by North Korea would result in the
US and South Korea being “completely destroyed in an instant.”
Beijing
has long been concerned about potential instability in North Korea should the
regime in Pyongyang collapse, fearing both an influx of refugees and the
potential of reunification under a South Korean government closely allied to
the US.
China is
also opposed to the US military’s presence in South Korea, protesting the
recent US and South Korea decision to begin deploying elements of the THAAD
missile defense system.
Given the
close economic links between North Korea and China, U.S. military officials
have said that Beijing is critical to solving the North Korean situation, with
President Donald Trump recently commending Chinese President Xi Jinping for
Chinese efforts to curb Pyongyang’s activities.
Several
senior administration officials told CNN Thursday that China is now the focus
of the Trump administration’s North Korea strategy.
“Nobody
thinks the Chinese are going to press North Korea militarily or bring the
regime to its knees, but the strategy looks to China to find a political
solution more than anything else,” one senior administration official said.
The
officials said Trump’s approach is based on a careful review of past US efforts
to deal with North Korea, noting that during the analysis of failed negotiating
efforts with the long-reigning Kim family, one thing became abundantly clear:
“China has never exerted maximum leverage on the Kim regime.”
It’s
estimated that some 85% of North Korea’s economic trade is dependent on China.
Given those close economic links, U.S. military officials have said that
Beijing is critical to solving the North Korean situation.
And China
appeared to reciprocate Wednesday, with Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu
Kang saying Beijing was “gravely concerned” about North Korea’s recent nuclear
and missile activities while simultaneously praising Washington’s approach to
the issue.
“American
officials did make some positive and constructive remarks … such as using
whatever peaceful means possible to resolve the (Korean) Peninsula nuclear
issue. This represents a general direction that we believe is correct and
should be adhered to,” Lu said.
But one
senior administration official cautioned that the China-centric strategy was
still in an early stage, and that “there are many more stages to go.”
CNN
