SYDNEY: Britain and Australia urged China on Thursday to do more to persuade North Korea to drop its nuclear and missile programs.
Earlier this month North Korea, which has warned Australia could be the target of a strike, said it had conducted its first test of an intercontinental ballistic missile, which experts say could reach Alaska.
The United States and other countries have indicated frustration that China, North Korea’s sole major ally, has not done more to rein in the regime of Kim Jung Un. China maintains it does not hold the key to a resolution.
“With international influence comes responsibility. It is now for Beijing to use the influence it has over the North Korean regime to get it to abandon its program,” British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon told reporters in Sydney.
North Korea has been under UN sanctions since 2006 over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs and the Security Council has ratcheted up measures in response to five nuclear weapons tests and two long-range missile launches.
Fallon said North Korea continues to receive help in developing its missile and nuclear ambitions as he called on enforcement of the sanctions.
North Korea’s missile and nuclear program was a central element of the fourth annual meeting of Australia and British ministers.
“We are seeing a level of uncertainty that we have not witnessed in a very long time,” Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told reporters in Sydney.
“It is more important than ever before for like-minded countries to find common cause in supporting that international rules-based order.”
Earlier, Bishop told the Australian Broadcasting Corp’s Radio National that China “has much more leverage over North Korea than it claims.”
“The export relationship with North Korea, the provision of remittance to workers, the foreign investment flows, the technology flows — these are all in China’s hands,” she said.
China has rejected the criticism and urged a halt to what it called the “China responsibility theory,” saying all parties needed to pull their weight.
“Of course, as an important neighbor of the Korean peninsula, China has always proactively dedicated itself to working with the international community to appropriately resolve the peninsula nuclear issue via political talks,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a daily news briefing on Thursday.
The United States could impose new sanctions on Chinese firms doing business with Pyongyang, senior US officials have said.
UK, Australia urge Beijing to do more on N. Korea threat
UK, Australia urge Beijing to do more on N. Korea threat
Australia holds day of reflection to honor victims of Bondi Beach attack
- The gun attack, Australia’s worst in nearly 30 years, is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting Jews
SYDNEY: Australia held a day of reflection on Sunday to honor those killed and wounded in a mass shooting that targeted a seaside Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach a week ago.
The gun attack, Australia’s worst in nearly 30 years, is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting Jews. Authorities have ramped up patrols and policing across the country to prevent further antisemitic violence.
Australian flags were flown at half-mast on Sunday on federal and New South Wales state government buildings, with an official minute of silence to be held at 6:47 p.m. local time.
Authorities also invited Australians to light a candle on Sunday night “as a quiet act of remembrance with family, friends or loved ones” of the 15 people killed and dozens wounded in the attack, allegedly carried out by a father and son.
“At 6:47 p.m., you can light a candle in your window to remember the victims of the antisemitic terrorist attack in Bondi and support those who are grieving,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on social media platform X late on Saturday.
Albanese, under pressure from critics who say his center-left government has not done enough to curb a surge in antisemitism since Israel launched its war in Gaza, has vowed to strengthen hate laws in the wake of the massacre.
On Saturday, the government of New South Wales, which includes Sydney, pledged to introduce a bill on Monday to ban the display of symbols and flags of “terrorist organizations,” including those of Al-Qaeda, Al Shabab, Boko Haram, Hamas, Hezbollah and Daesh.
Around 1,000 surf lifesavers returned to duty at Bondi Beach on Saturday, restarting patrols after a halt sparked by the shooting on the first evening of the Jewish festival.
A day earlier, Australia’s Jewish community gathered at Bondi Beach for prayers, while hundreds of swimmers and surfers formed a huge circle in the waters off the beach to honor victims.
Alleged gunman Sajid Akram, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene. His 24-year-old son Naveed Akram, who was also shot by police and emerged from a coma on Tuesday afternoon, has been charged with 59 offenses, including murder and terrorism, according to police. He remained in custody in hospital.
Authorities believe the pair was inspired by militant Sunni Muslim group Daesh, with flags of the group allegedly found in the car the two took to Bondi.
