US-DPRK antagonism root cause of nuke test: experts

The United States should reflect seriously on the latest nuclear test of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), which was caused by long-standing antagonism between the two countries, Chinese experts said.

After the DPRK's nuclear test earlier this week, some Western media said China's policy toward the country has proven to be a failure, a straw-man fallacy refuted by Chinese experts and scholars.

History has proven that a country threatened by force and sanctions would maintain and further develop its own military strength, they said.

ILL-FOUNDED ARGUMENT ON CHINA'S "FAILURE"

Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University, said the DPRK decided to conduct the third nuclear test on the basis of its own interests, instead of being in accordance to China's will.

On denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, all parties concerned should assume their respective obligations accordingly, he said, adding that the DPRK's firm stance on the nuclear test showed that their efforts had not been successful.

Echoing Shi's view, Liu Jiangyong, a professor of international relations at Tsinghua University, said the argument that China's DPRK policy has failed is ill-founded.

Such arguments of some foreign media or on the internet are either provocation or have ulterior motives, he said.

China has done nothing wrong in and will stick to its position on the issue, for which the country urges a resolution through dialogue, he added.

After the DPRK's third nuclear test, Tao Wenzhao, a research fellow with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), said in an article that China has been criticized for keeping trade and economic relations with the DPRK, which are described as a "big loophole" of the United Nations' sanctions against the country.

As a matter of fact, he said, China has strictly adhered to relevant UN resolutions that do not demand cutting off all economic exchanges with the DPRK.