Koreas were close to war says Chinese diplomat

South Korean soldiers, file photo

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/156563.html


A top Chinese diplomat says the enmity between the two Koreas had come “close to fighting a war,” as tension had mounted in the Korean Peninsula.

China' deputy UN ambassador, Wang Min, who was speaking to an audience of young people at a Security Council debate on Tuesday, reiterated that tension in the Korean Peninsula has been very high “especially in the past two days.”

Western countries' efforts to issue a statement during a UN Security Council emergency meeting on Monday to publicly condemn North Korea's artillery attack yielded no results due to China's resistance.

Pointing out the long-lasting hostilities between North and South Korea, he stressed that the UN Security Council aimed at finding a peaceful solution to the crisis, but not in the near future.

“Their feud has gone on for decades, it did not start yesterday, therefore it is unlikely that the problems can be resolved overnight," Wang said.

"First of all we hope that they can remain calm, we hope that they will refrain from engaging in any conflict," he added.

South Korea carried out one-day live-fire drills near a disputed sea border island with North Korea on Monday despite threats of retaliation and stronger attacks from Pyongyang.

However, North retracted its earlier threats saying it does not intend to retaliate for the exercises.

China has strongly urged both sides of the Korean Peninsula to show calm and restraint to solve issues through peaceful dialogue, saying that maintaining peace and stability in the region is in the interest of both sides.