"In light of the great power competition, China sees North Korea as leverage more than ever," said Yun Sun, director of the China Program at the Stimson Center. If, for example, the U.S. wants China to support additional sanctions on North Korea, "China is unlikely to comply unless (the) U.S. reciprocates on some other fronts," she added. China, like North Korea, wants to maintain "the absence of U.S. forces near China's border," according to a Pentagon report released earlier this month on China. "There is also no indication that Xi offered to cooperate on North Korea in exchange for U.S. concessions in other areas. The Biden administration has been offering talks with North Korea "without preconditions," but Pyongyang has largely resisted the offer.

Source: The North Africa Journal November 18, 2021 13:36 UTC