China urged to force North Korea to abandon weapons programme

Tokyo : Japan on Monday urged China to put pressure on North Korea to abandon its nuclear and missile programmes. On Sunday, North Korea launched a mid-range ballistic missile that flew for about 500 km before falling into the Sea of Japan, Efe news reported.

Japan has requested China, being a UN Security Council member, to act in a constructive and responsible manner and control the provocative actions of North Korea, said Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

Suga added that Beijing's role is very crucial in dealing with Pyongyang, as China accounts for around 90 per cent of North Korea's foreign trade.

His statement comes after Japan, South Korea and the US called for an urgent Security Council meeting, following North Korea's latest missile test, to discuss toughening of sanctions against Pyongyang.

The UN Security Council last year approved two sanctions on North Korea after it detonated two atomic bombs within a period of eight months and launched more than 20 ballistic missiles, including a space rocket, considered by the international community as a disguised long-range missile test.

The missile launch carried out by Pyongyang on Sunday is the first since October last year and is also the regime's first since Donald Trump became US President.