Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Japanese counterpart that China opposes "unhelpful" unilateral sanctions on North Korea but will work within the United Nations to formulate a necessary response to its fifth nuclear test. China has expressed anger with North Korea for its largest nuclear test to date last week, but has not said directly whether it will support tougher sanctions. China has said it believes sanctions are not the ultimate answer and called for a return to talks. "With all sides focused on the authoritative channel of the Security Council, China opposes unilateral sanctions that are unhelpful to resolving the issue," the statement paraphrased Wang as saying, without elaborating. A U.S. special envoy for North Korea, Sung Kim, met Japanese officials on Sunday and said the United States may launch unilateral sanctions against North Korea, echoing comments by U.S. President Barack Obama last Friday.

Source: Egypt Independent September 15, 2016 09:00 UTC