01 July, 2017
USA foreign policy experts say Chinese companies have long had a key role in financing Pyongyang. Although Trump's treasury secretary said the move didn't target China, it comes a week after the president lamented that China's promise to help with North Korea "has not worked out".
North Korea's U.N. ambassador warned the United States and the rest of the world Wednesday that his country will keep building up its nuclear arsenal regardless of sanctions, pressure or military attack.
"I think this is Trump playing the Taiwan card to put pressure on China to do more on North Korea and maybe also on the trade front", Lam said.
"It's a very firm indication that the honeymoon after the Mar-a-Lago summit is over and that tweet in particular. that was a clear signal that there was going to be a change and cooling in temperature of China and U.S. ties", Euan Graham, International Security Program director at Sydney's Lowy Institute, told CNN. The Trump administration announced it would sell $1.4 billion worth of weapons to Taiwan.
U.S. arms sales to Taiwan always anger Beijing because it considers the self-governing island part of its territory.
The chinese bank Bank of Dandong is accused by the u.s. department of serve as an intermediary "to illicit financial activity on the part of North Korea", by facilitating millions of dollars in transactions for the benefit of companies involved in the development of ballistic missiles. On Tuesday, a new United States government report labeled China as one of the world's worst offenders in human trafficking.
"The news quickly sent Beijing into a tizzy, with the Chinese Foreign Ministry demanding that the US revoke its decision and claiming that the move "[ran] counter to the consensus reached by the two presidents" at Mar-a-Lago. North Korea's has used US' military exercises in the regions as means of galvanizing its people, claiming that the exercises are dress rehearsals for impending invasion.
The Treasury Department calls the Bank of Dandong a "primary money-laundering concern" and is proposing severing the bank from the USA financial system, pending a 60-day review period.
"The latest situation has also illustrated that Trump is a leader without patience", Mr. Shi said.
Kim In Ryong told the U.N. Security Council that the more than 50-year confrontation between North Korea and the United States came closer to the brink of nuclear war than ever before when the USA military held what he called its largest-ever "aggressive" maneuvers with South Korea in April and May. They are likely to discuss a controversial U.S. missile defence system that has been set up in South Korea to guard against missile threats from the North.
"The Chinese tried to gauge what were the minimal steps they could take to comply with the resolutions and show they were serious about North Korea's program", said Bonnie S. Glaser, a senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
"Without rewarding North Korea for its bad actions, South Korea and the United States should closely consult what they may give the North in return for a nuclear freeze", he said.
This week, with South Korea's president visiting the White House, President Trump fired several shots across the bow.
Washington has repeatedly urged China to exert more economic and diplomatic pressure on North Korea. If not reversed, they could have consequences, he said.
"We are in no way targeting China with these actions", Mnuchin told reporters in a prepared statement.
In April, the U.S. sent its Carl Vinson aircraft carrier towards the Korean Peninsula, saying it was taking prudent measures against the North. Pyongyang has vowed to "react to any mode of war".
Mr Mnuchin said that the U.S. could impose more sanctions in the future.
Three months after their friendly Mar-a-Lago summit, the honeymoon between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping may officially be over.
"We will follow the money and cut off the money", he told a news conference.
