US Calls on China to ‘Curb’ North Korean Involvement in Russia–Ukraine War

Secretary of State Antony Blinken (2nd R) and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (R) speak with the press alongside South Korean Foreign Affairs Minister Cho Tae-yul (2nd L) and South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun (L) as they participate in the U.S.–Republic of Korea Foreign and Defense Ministerial meeting at the State Department in Washington on Oct. 31, 2024. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed on Oct. 31 that the United States has communicated with China about curbing North Korea’s involvement in the ongoing Russia–Ukraine war.

“In fact, we had a robust conversation just this week, and I think they know well the concerns that we have and the expectations that, both in word and deed, they’ll use the influence that they have to work to curb these activities,” Blinken said during a press conference after meetings with South Korean officials.

Blinken noted that China is a member of the U.N. Security Council and is expected to demand that North Korea and Russia cease provocative military action in violation of U.N. resolutions.

“So we’ll see if they take action,” he said of China.

Beijing has not yet shown signs of action.

Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said in a statement that China’s position on the Ukraine crisis is “consistent and clear.”

Liu said that Beijing supports “peace talks and political settlement of the Ukraine crisis,“ noting that its ”position remains unchanged ... [and] will continue to play a constructive role” to that end.

According to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, the Chinese communist regime has refused to condemn Russia’s war actions and continued to support them through financial and technological means.

“If China is serious about its desire for de-escalation, it should be asking Russia some hard questions at this point,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said at the press conference on Oct. 31.

The deepening North Korea–Russia partnership was a major topic in discussions involving Blinken, Austin, and their South Korean counterparts, Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and Minister of Defense Kim Yong-hyun.

Cho said Korean officials continue to hold high-level talks with China regarding the military partnership between North Korea and Russia.

“China still continues to be silent,” Kim said, noting that if it comes to “a point when the interests of China will be violated,” then “China will begin to play a certain role.”

Blinken said on Oct. 31 that about 10,000 North Korean soldiers have arrived in far east Russia and that up to 8,000 North Korean troops were likely to begin fighting alongside Russian soldiers in the western Kursk region on the Ukrainian border in the coming days.

Also on Oct. 31, North Korea tested a new intercontinental ballistic missile, a long-distance nuclear-capable missile that can strike as far as anywhere in the United States.

“We condemn it in the strongest terms, the latest launch of many and other provocative actions that it’s taken, flagrant violations all of multiple UN Security Council resolutions,” Blinken said, according to the statement. “All countries should be demanding that the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] cease these destabilizing actions.”

Blinken said the injection of North Korean troops into Russian forces has also provided training for Pyongyang’s military.

“Russia has been training DPRK soldiers in artillery, UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles], basic infantry operations, including trench clearing, indicating that they fully intend to use these forces in frontline operations,” he said.

The officials highlighted increased cooperation between South Korea, Japan, and the United States amid the destabilizing actions of the authoritarian regimes in the Indo-Pacific and European fronts.