China, pressed on using levers against North Korea, insists US holds the key Advertisement Kirsty Needham 3 hrs ago FACEBOOK SHARE EMAIL EMAIL TWITTER WHATSAPP Play Video North Korea: 'Beijing has to step up' Beijing: For weeks Washington has pushed the view that Beijing is the key to solving the North Korean nuclear problem. For days US President Donald Trump has publicly raised hopes that Chinese cooperation, after a successful meeting at Mar-a-Lago, is underway. Advertisement So why did China's foreign ministry spokesman snap on Monday: "China is not the culprit of the issue, nor does it hold the crux and the key to resolving it." The United States was the most important participant, he said. RELATED CONTENT North Korea will test missiles 'weekly', senior official says Donald Trump's options on North Korea largely unchanged The remark coincided with reports that China's attempts to get North Korea to even meet its nuclear envoy have been ignored. China has refused to comment on whether Wu Dawei, who travelled to South Korea last week to discuss tough new sanctions, had to cancel a planned visit to Pyongyang on Friday. SHARE SHARE ON FACEBOOK SHARE ON TWITTER LINK http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-pressed-on-using-levers-against-north-korea-insists-us-holds-the-key-20170418-gvn0ex.html A submarine missile is paraded across Kim Il-sung Square during a military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea on Saturday. A submarine missile is paraded across Kim Il-sung Square during a military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea on Saturday. Photo: AP Bloomberg reported the North Korean regime didn't respond to a request for a meeting. North Korea's deputy in the United Nations on Monday night also refused to confirm whether Pyongyang had ignored China's request to meet, while complaining that nuclear war could break out at any moment. SHARE SHARE ON FACEBOOK SHARE ON TWITTER LINK http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-pressed-on-using-levers-against-north-korea-insists-us-holds-the-key-20170418-gvn0ex.html US Vice-President Mike Pence says "all options are on the table". US Vice-President Mike Pence says "all options are on the table". Photo: AP North Korea objects to a UN Security Council meeting scheduled for April 28, and to be chaired by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, designed to show the international community's resolve in dealing with North Korea's nuclear program. The meeting may be a deadline for Pyongyang to respond to China's overtures. SHARE SHARE ON FACEBOOK SHARE ON TWITTER LINK http://www.smh.com.au/world/china-pressed-on-using-levers-against-north-korea-insists-us-holds-the-key-20170418-gvn0ex.html Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi: China ready to work "with all relevant countries". Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi: China ready to work "with all relevant countries". Photo: AP Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday that China was ready to work "with all relevant countries" within the framework of the UN Security Council. "The US has also reaffirmed its willingness to stick to peaceful and diplomatic means ... they also say all options are on the table," Mr Wang said at a Beijing press conference. In the wake of US Vice-President Mike Pence's visit to South Korea to declare the era of strategic patience was over, China's Global Times newspaper wrote in an editorial that China will cooperate with the US by imposing stricter economic sanctions on Pyongyang that will devastate the North Korean economy, but it won't support a military strike. Chinese sanctions alone will not immediately force North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons, and Washington also must provide a security guarantee, the editorial said. The stick needs a carrot. Mr Wang said the Global Times has its own point of view. In a softening of US rhetoric, acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Susan Thornton told reporters the US wasn't seeking regime change or conflict in North Korea. But the US wanted to see a "tangible signal" from North Korea that it is serious about engaging in talks. "President Trump is very hopeful that the Chinese will undertake to use the considerable leverage that they have over the economic lifeblood of the North Korean economy," she said. China has begun to cut off funding by turning back coal exports, and is mooted to be considering cutting crude oil supply. China's blunt comment on Monday means it may not be that simple. Chinese President Xi Jinping hasn't met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un since becoming leader. China's last close link to Pyongyang was Kim's uncle, Jang Song-thaek, executed in 2013.