The chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, said on Wednesday he was disappointed by the international community’s “tepid” response to North Korea’s attack on a South Korean warship and called on China to step up and do more.
In an unusually blunt remarks, Mullen said China has the potential to be a productive leader in Asia and to work with the US to promote stability.
“Beijing’s answer has been sometimes yes and sometimes no,” he said in remarks prepared for delivery to the Asia Society’s annual dinner in Washington.
Mullen’s comments echoed the tough rhetoric used last week by US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates when attending an international conference in Singapore. Gates had planned to visit Beijing, but was disinvited.
South Korea has asked the UN Security Council to punish the North after an international investigation said a North Korean torpedo sank the Cheonan in March, killing 46 sailors. North Korea denies responsibility and says any punishment will trigger war.
He also reiterated long-standing US concerns about Beijing’s huge military buildup.
Mullen said he was now “genuinely concerned” about the “gap as wide as what seems to be forming between China’s stated intent and its military programs.”
In Beijing yesterday, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Qin Gang (秦剛) rebuffed the admiral’s criticism, saying China was working to maintain peace in the region.
“In handling this issue ... China’s purpose is to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. All that we have done is based on this position,” Qin said. “So we hope all parties can understand that and cooperate with China to properly deal with this issue.”
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