Wang-Tillerson meet amid tensions in Korean peninsula

After delivering a warning to North Korea that "all options" for responding to its future provocation are on the table, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi and discussed cooperation in dealing with the "challenge" of the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.
Tillerson met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang after chairing a high-level session at the UN Security Council on North Korea here yesterday.
The meeting came just hours before North Korea test-fired another ballistic missile but it "failed" to go beyond its territory.
The Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency said in a report that two sides agreed the current situation on the Korean Peninsula poses a challenge.

"All parties have reiterated the goal of denuclearisation and have promised to strictly implement relevant Security Council resolutions and to resolve the issue through peaceful dialogue and negotiation so as to ease tensions as soon as possible," the agency said.
Tillerson, chairing the UNSC meeting as President of the Council, had asserted that Washington's goal is "not regime change" in the isolated country nor does it "desire to threaten the North Korean people or destabilise the Asia Pacific region."

He, however, warned that no options are off the table in dealing with the nuclear threat posed by North Korea.
Tillerson told the Chinese Foreign Minister that the two sides have launched cooperation in a constructive way on international and regional issues including the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula, by which the United States is encouraged.

"The United States is looking forward to working with China to hold high-level dialogues in various areas, enhance communication, strengthen cooperation and confront challenges," the agency quoted Tillerson as saying.
Wang said the historical meeting between Chinese PresidentXi Jinpingand US President Donald Trump at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida was a complete success, with relations between Washingon and Beijing achieving a smooth transition with a good start.
This was a positive sign that the two sides are willing to cooperate for the well-being of the two peoples and to jointly contribute to world peace, Wang said.
Wang noted that close communication between leaders of the two countries plays an important and leading role in the development of bilateral ties.

In this regard, the two sides need to cooperate closely to make preparations for Trump's state visit to China this year, he added.
Noting that China and the United Stateshave established four high-level dialogue mechanisms, Wang said that the two sides should move forward to reach more consensuses and manage differences well so as to ensure the healthy and stable development of bilateral ties.