Chairing a ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council Friday, Tillerson declared that ‘‘failing to act now on the most pressing security issue in the world may bring catastrophic consequences.’’
Tillerson said all options ‘‘must remain the table,’’ while emphasizing the need for diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea.
No voice at Friday’s session was more important than China, a conduit for 90 percent of the North’s commerce.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China would adhere to past UN resolutions and wants a denuclearized peninsula. But he spelled out no further steps his government might consider, despite Tillerson’s assertions in an interview hours ahead of the council meeting that Beijing would impose sanctions of its own if North Korea conducts another nuclear test.
Instead, Wang put forward a familiar Chinese idea to ease tensions: North Korea suspending its nuclear and missile activities, if the United States and South Korea stop military exercises in the region. Washington and its allies reject the idea.