According to a report by Korea JoongAng Daily, China appears to be preparing measures in case North Korea tests a nuclear device or performs another provocation, including possibly suspending oil to the regime, and adds that relations between Beijing and Pyongyang appear frostier than ever before.
Just when a few hours had passed without any escalation around the Korean Peninsula, The Guardian reports that the US military is considering shooting down North Korean missile tests as a show of strength to Pyongyang according to two sources briefed on the plans.
As the USS Carl Vinson heads towards the peninsula, along with two oither carriers, the Pentagon is looking for ways short of war to pressure North Korea into denuclearization, particularly if Pyongyang goes forward with an anticipated sixth nuclear test.
In response to the US vice president, Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said that Mike Pence’s statement on the US running out of “strategic patience”
towards Pyongyang does not contribute to resolving the crisis. The top Russian diplomat also voiced hope there will be no repeat of the US strike on Syria in North Korea.
Following US Vice President Pence's earlier remarks that "the era of strategic patience is over."
.@VP Mike Pence on North Korea: “The era of strategic patience is over.” https://t.co/78WhdfZWfb pic.twitter.com/I3JnAal71I
— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 17, 2017
Ambassador Kim, North Korea's Permanent UN Representative, hosted a news conference in Ryong on "the consideration of non-proliferation in the DPRK to be held in the Security Council on April 28."
In the midst of a 10-day Asia trip, Vice President Pence made an unannounced visit to the 4km-wide heavily-mined demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas where he met with troops, encouraged China to take action against North Kore, and warned Pyongyang that after years of testing the U.S. and South Korea with its nuclear ambitions, "the era of strategic patience is over."