Undeterred by East China Sea intercept, Yang and Tillerson agree to closer cooperation between China and United States<\/b>
\nChina and the United States could be nearer to a consensus on handling North Korea, analysts say, with a commitment from the top diplomats of both countries to work closer together on international issues. The commitment was made on Saturday in a phone call between State Councillor Yang Jiechi and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and came as US and Chinese armed forces took aim at each other over an intercept by two Chinese jets of a US aircraft over the northern East China Sea. Yang said China and the US should \u201cstep up communication and coordination on major international and regional issues\u201d, Xinhua reported, adding that Beijing would work closely with Washington to ensure the success of the upcoming China-US diplomatic and security dialogue. Xinhua singled out \u201cNorth Korea\u201d as one of the international issues discussed in the call, but gave no details. Meanwhile, defence ministry spokesman Wu Qian rejected US Air Force claims that two Chinese Su-30 fighter jets acted unprofessionally in intercepting a US nuclear \u2018sniffer\u2019 aircraft on a \u201croutine mission\u201d in international airspace on Wednesday. \u201cThe allegations from the US side are inconsistent with the facts, \u201d Wu said, adding the US WC-135 Constant Phoenix was carrying out reconnaissance in \u201cthe Chinese Yellow Sea\u201d. \u201cChinese aircraft acted to identify and investigate in accordance with the law. The operation was professional and safe, \u201d Wu said. Japanese news outlet Nikkei reported the WC-135 was deployed by the Pentagon to the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa to monitor nuclear tests by North Korea. Ren Xiao, from Fudan University\u2019s Institute of International Studies, said the intercept was a \u201cminor friction\u201d and unlikely to affect cooperation between the two countries on North Korea unless such incidents became more serious and frequent. Zhang Tuosheng, from the China Foundation for International and Strategic Studies, said one of the key conflicts to be resolved between China and the United States was whether to use force if North Korea insisted on pressing ahead with its nuclear programme. \u201cTo build consensus and stop further nuclear moves by North Korea, China needs to step up its efforts, both as a major player in the international community and as a neighbour state, \u201d Zhang said. \u201cBut the US needs to make concessions as well.\u201d US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis warned on Friday that the US should work with regional powers to pursue non-military means to address North Korea\u2019s nuclear ambitions because the alternative would be \u201ctragic on an unbelievable scale\u201d. Mattis said Pyongyang\u2019s test of a new intermediate-range ballistic missile last week as \u201cprovocative\u201d, but he also stressed the need for a peaceful resolution by working through the United Nations with countries including China, Pyongyang\u2019s traditional ally and benefactor.<\/p>\n

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