BEIJING: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged China on Thursday to help defuse tension over Iran, North Korea and other global flashpoints, seeking to salvage talks that have been overwhelmed by negotiations over a dissident.
In her opening remarks to the two-day US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue, Clinton pressed China on human rights but avoided mention of Chen Guangcheng, a blind rights activist who sought protection in the US embassy until he left under a deal to stay in China - a deal he later said he regretted.
Despite the uproar, Clinton said the United States hoped China would help rein in the nuclear activities of North Korea and Iran, and pressure the Syrian government to halt violence.
“On Iran, the United States and China share the goal of preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon,” Clinton told US and Chinese officials gathered in the Chinese capital.
“It is critical that we keep the pressure on Iran to meet its international obligations, negotiate seriously, and prove that its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes,” she said.
China is a major buyer of Iranian crude oil, and has resisted US demands for sanctions threatening energy flows.
China has also resisted calls from Washington and its Asian allies for stronger pressure on North Korea, its neighbor and long-time ally that recently launched a rocket that the UN Security Council said violated sanctions.
Clinton said Washington and Beijing should “work together to make it clear to North Korea that strength and security will come from prioritizing the needs of its people - not further provocation.”
But the uproar over the dissident Chen hovered over the opening of the US-China talks.
Chen left the US embassy on Wednesday after Washington said it had won assurances from Beijing about his safety following his escape from 19 months of captivity in his home.
But Chen later said he feared for his safety and wanted to leave for the United States.
“Of course, as part of our dialogue, the United States raises the importance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,” Clinton said in her remarks.
“We believe all governments have to answer our citizens’ aspirations for dignity and the rule of law and that no nation can or should deny those rights.”
Clinton urges China to help on Iran, North Korea
Clinton urges China to help on Iran, North Korea
Shooter kills 9 at Canadian school and residence
- The shooter was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound
- A total of 27 people were wounded in the shooting, including two with serious injuries
TORONTO: A shooter killed nine people and wounded dozens more at a secondary school and a residence in a remote part of western Canada on Tuesday, authorities said, in one of the deadliest mass shootings in the country’s history.
The suspect, described by police in an initial emergency alert as a “female in a dress with brown hair,” was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials said.
The attack occurred in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, a picturesque mountain valley town in the foothills of the Rockies.
A total of 27 people were wounded in the shooting, including two with serious injuries, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the “horrific acts of violence” and announced he was suspending plans to travel to the Munich Security Conference on Wednesday, where he had been set to hold talks with allies on transatlantic defense readiness.
Police said an alert was issued about an active shooter at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School on Tuesday afternoon.
As police searched the school, they found six people shot dead. A seventh person with a gunshot wound died en route to hospital.
Separately, police found two more bodies at a residence in the town.
The residence is “believed to be connected to the incident,” police said.
At the school, “an individual believed to be the shooter was also found deceased with what appears to be a self?inflicted injury,” police said.
Police have not yet released any information about the age of the shooter or the victims.
“We are devastated by the loss of life and the profound impact this tragedy has had on families, students, staff, and our entire town,” the municipality of Tumbler Ridge said in a statement.
Tumbler Ridge student Darian Quist told public broadcaster CBC that he was in his mechanics class when there was an announcement that the school was in lockdown.
He said that initially he “didn’t think anything was going on,” but started receiving “disturbing” photos about the carnage.
“It set in what was happening,” Quist said.
He said he stayed in lockdown for more than two hours until police stormed in, ordering everyone to put their hands up before escorting them out of the school.
Trent Ernst, a local journalist and a former substitute teacher at Tumbler Ridge, expressed shock over the shooting at the school, where one of his children has just graduated.
He noted that school shootings have been a rarity occurring every few years in Canada compared with the United States, where they are far more frequent.
“I used to kind of go: ‘Look at Canada, look at who we are.’ But then that one school shooting every 2.5 years happens in your town and things... just go off the rails,” he told AFP.
‘Heartbreak’
While mass shootings are extremely rare in Canada, last April, a vehicle attack that targeted a Filipino cultural festival in Vancouver killed 11 people.
British Columbia Premier David Eby called the latest violence “unimaginable.”
Nina Krieger, British Columbia’s minister of public safety, said it was “one of the worst mass shootings in our province’s and country’s history.”
The Canadian Olympic Committee, whose athletes are competing in the 2026 Winter Games in Italy, said Wednesday it was “heartbroken by the news of the horrific school shooting.”
Ken Floyd, commander of the police’s northern district, said: “This has been an incredibly difficult and emotional day for our community, and we are grateful for the cooperation shown as officers continue their work to advance the investigation.”
Floyd told reporters the shooter was the same suspect police described as “female” in a prior emergency alert to community members, but declined to provide any details on the suspect’s identity.
The police said officers were searching other homes and properties in the community to see if there were additional sites connected to the incident.
Tumbler Ridge, a quiet town with roughly 2,400 residents, is more than 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) north of Vancouver, British Columbia’s largest city.
“There are no words sufficient for the heartbreak our community is experiencing tonight,” the municipality said.
