Xi urges Trump to exercise restraint on North Korea threat build-up

China's President Xi Jinping on Saturday urged US President Donald Trump to exercise restraint following a dramatic exchange of threats between Washington and Pyongyang.

Xi made it clear in a phone call that he was asking both sides to scale down the rhetoric and stressed the importance of diplomacy, China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"At present, relevant parties should exercise restraint and avoid words and actions that would escalate tensions on the Korean Peninsula," Xi told Trump during the call.

He also said that China was willing to work with the US government to resolve the issue, Xinhua news agency reported.

"China and the US have common interests in achieving de-nuclearisation on the Korean Peninsula and maintaining peace and stability there," Xi said.

But North Korea continued to fuel tension, with the state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun reporting that almost 3.5 million people, including students and retired soldiers, had asked to join the military to fight against the US after the regime announced a retaliation against the US on August 7 for its support of the new UNSC sanctions.
READ MORE