China admits that more UN sanctions could help rein in North Korea

Beijing admitted on Thursday that it agreed with the US on its push to enforce tougher sanctions on North Korea after its continued nuclear testing, but the Asian powerhouse was assertive in its stance that an open dialogue with the rogue state would go a long way to resolve the crisis on the Korean Peninsula.

Washington had previously asked the United Nations Security Council to impose an oil embargo on North Korea, ban its exports and halt hiring of its nationals abroad, as well as freezing Kim Jong-un's personal assets and imposing a travel ban on the DPRK's supreme leader, but since the Hermit Kingdom conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test on Sunday Donald Trump implored China to do more to haul in its neighbour and ally that continued to defy UN sanctions.

"Given the new developments on the Korean peninsula, China agrees that the UN Security Council should make a further response and take necessary measures," Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi told a group of reporters on Thursday.

"Any new actions taken by the international community against the DPRK should serve the purpose of curbing the DPRK's nuclear and missile programmes, while at the same time be conducive to restarting dialogue and consultation," he said.

China, which is responsible for over 90% of North Korea's two-way trade, exports tonnes of oil and oil-based products to the impoverished regime every year and had been previously scorned by the US for its failure to stand up to Pyongyang as Kim was continuously "begging for war."