"Pressure or sanctions just do not fit the five-decade-long North Korean-Chinese relations. It is just a unilateral US hope," Nam said.
Beck said that China was "engaging in some arm-twisting" but it was uncertain whether Beijing had the political will or even the ability to bring Pyongyang to heel.
"By hook or by crook they are going to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table," he said. "We can't say anything more than that with certainty."