{"id":2200919,"date":"2023-05-05T08:00:09","date_gmt":"2023-05-04T23:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2200919"},"modified":"2023-05-04T18:33:58","modified_gmt":"2023-05-04T09:33:58","slug":"beijing-responds-to-yoons-criticism-over-north-korea-sanctions-enforcement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/05\/beijing-responds-to-yoons-criticism-over-north-korea-sanctions-enforcement\/","title":{"rendered":"Beijing responds to Yoon\u2019s criticism over North Korea sanctions enforcement"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, <\/span>stated<\/span><\/a> during a regular press briefing on Thursday, \u201cChina is faithfully fulfilling its due international obligations.\u201d This statement was in response to a question from <\/span>Yonhap News Agency<\/span><\/i> about President Yoon Suk-yeol\u2019s <\/span>remarks<\/span><\/a> that China is not enforcing U.N. sanctions on North Korea \u201cat all.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Mao added, \u201cWe hope that all parties clearly recognize the symptoms of the Korean Peninsula issue and administer the appropriate remedy for those symptoms.\u201d She used a Chinese idiom \u201cto catch fish by climbing a tree\u201d (\u7de3\u6728\u6c42\u9b5a), which means that it is impossible to succeed in a task because the ends and the means are not aligned. This likely reflects Beijing\u2019s position that dialogue is needed to resolve North Korea\u2019s nuclear weapons program rather than economic sanctions.<\/span><\/p>\n Why It Matters<\/b><\/p>\n President Yoon Suk-yeol\u2019s remark that China is not enforcing U.N. sanctions on North Korea \u201cat all\u201d was unusually blunt, reflecting his government\u2019s more overt shift in its alignment with Washington. Yoon said that Seoul had \u201cno choice\u201d but to align itself with Washington because Beijing was not enforcing sanctions on North Korea. This comment came in response to a question from reporters about China\u2019s displeasure regarding his recent state visit to the U.S. and the Washington Declaration. Beijing <\/span>stated<\/span><\/a> that the allies\u2019 decision to deploy a U.S. nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine around South Korean waters \u201churts the strategic interests of other countries\u201d and claimed that it was a \u201csource of tension\u201d for the region.<\/span><\/p>\n Tensions between Seoul and Beijing have escalated following Yoon\u2019s statements in a Reuters interview, in which he expressed South Korea\u2019s opposition to any attempt to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait by force. Further, he suggested that the Taiwan issue holds global significance, drawing parallels to North Korea\u2019s nuclear weapons program. Both nations have summoned each other\u2019s ambassadors in response to these remarks.<\/span><\/p>\n