South Korea Asks China to Play ‘Constructive Role’ against North’s Threats

South Korea's Foreign Minister Park Jin talks to China's Communist Party's foreign policy chief Wang Yi prior to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, 13 July 2023. (Reuters)
South Korea's Foreign Minister Park Jin talks to China's Communist Party's foreign policy chief Wang Yi prior to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, 13 July 2023. (Reuters)
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South Korea Asks China to Play ‘Constructive Role’ against North’s Threats

South Korea's Foreign Minister Park Jin talks to China's Communist Party's foreign policy chief Wang Yi prior to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, 13 July 2023. (Reuters)
South Korea's Foreign Minister Park Jin talks to China's Communist Party's foreign policy chief Wang Yi prior to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, 13 July 2023. (Reuters)

South Korea's Foreign Minister Park Jin on Friday called on China to play a "constructive role" in curbing North Korea's threats, after Pyongyang launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) this week.

The remarks were made during a meeting with Chinese top diplomat Wang Yi on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Jakarta, where Park "strongly denounced" North Korea's ICBM launch.

It is a common interest of Seoul and Beijing for North Korea to stop provocations and return to dialogue, his office said.

"Minister Park ... stressed that it was more important than ever for the Chinese side to play a constructive role for the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula," Seoul's foreign ministry said in a statement.

For several years, the United Nations Security Council has been divided over how to deal with Pyongyang.

China and Russia have said that more sanctions will not help to ease tensions, while Washington accuses Beijing and Moscow of emboldening North Korea by shielding it from more sanctions.

Relations between South Korea and China have also worsened since China's ambassador last month warned South Korea against making a wrong bet when it comes to Sino-US rivalry.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol had already angered China in April by saying the Taiwan issue was not merely an issue between China and democratically governed Taiwan, but a "global" issue similar to North Korea. Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory.

"The Taiwan issue is the core of China's core interests, and concerns the political foundation and basic faith of China-South Korea relations," Wang told Park at the ASEAN meetings, according to a Chinese foreign ministry readout on Saturday.

"It is hoped that the South Korean side will abide by the one-China principle and handle it prudently and properly."

China is willing to work with South Korea on rebuilding mutual trust and pushing their strategic partnership back to a healthy track, Wang said.

The two sides also exchanged views on the situation on the Korean Peninsula and other international and regional issues, China's foreign ministry said, without giving details.



US Senate Report Faults Secret Service Discipline after Trump Shooting

FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by US Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. President-elect Donald Trump will choose Sean Curran, right, as Secret Service Director.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by US Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. President-elect Donald Trump will choose Sean Curran, right, as Secret Service Director. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
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US Senate Report Faults Secret Service Discipline after Trump Shooting

FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by US Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. President-elect Donald Trump will choose Sean Curran, right, as Secret Service Director.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by US Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. President-elect Donald Trump will choose Sean Curran, right, as Secret Service Director. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

A US Senate report released on Sunday said a "cascade" of failures allowed a gunman to shoot at Donald Trump during a campaign rally last year and faulted Secret Service discipline including the lack of firings in the wake of the attack.

The report, released a year after a 20-year-old gunman opened fire on Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing his ear, accused the Secret Service of a pattern of negligence and communications breakdowns in planning and execution of the rally, said Reuters.

"This was not a single error. It was a cascade of preventable failures that nearly cost President Trump his life," the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee report said. The Secret Service is charged with protecting current and former presidents and their families, as well visiting foreign leaders and some other senior officials.

One attendee of the July 13, 2024, rally was killed and two others were injured in the shooting. The gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, was subsequently shot to death by Secret Service agents.

"This was not a single lapse in judgment. It was a complete breakdown of security at every level — fueled by bureaucratic indifference, a lack of clear protocols, and a shocking refusal to act on direct threats," the committee's Republican chairman, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, said in a statement.

Kimberly Cheatle resigned as the director of the Secret Service 10 days after the shooting, amid harsh scrutiny of the agency's role, and six Secret Service agents on duty during the attempt received suspensions ranging from 10 to 42 days, the agency said on Thursday.

The committee said more than six officials should have been punished, and that two of those who were disciplined received lighter punishments than it had recommended. It highlighted the fact that no one was fired.

Current Secret Service Director Sean Curran said in a statement that the agency has received the report and will continue to cooperate with the committee.

"Following the events of July 13, the Secret Service took a serious look at our operations and implemented substantive reforms to address the failures that occurred that day," Curran said.