China brushed aside criticism from President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday that Beijing has not done enough to prevent the development of North Korea's nuclear program.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said during a press briefing that China's attempts to delay Pyongyang's nuclear advances "are clear for all to see," the Wall Street Journal reported.
Geng highlighted China's support for United Nations sanctions against North Korea passed in November along with its convening of six-party talks aimed at persuading Pyongyang to shutdown its nuclear program.
Trump had taken to Twitter on Monday evening to condemn China's inaction against North Korea's weapons buildup in response to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's remarks over the weekend that Pyongyang could soon test an intercontinental ballistic missile.
"North Korea just stated that it is in the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon capable of reaching parts of the U.S.," Trump said in one post. "It won't happen!"
Less than an hour later, Trump tweeted: "China has been taking out massive amounts of money & wealth from the U.S. in totally one-sided trade, but won't help with North Korea. Nice!"
China has been taking out massive amounts of money & wealth from the U.S. in totally one-sided trade, but won't help with North Korea. Nice!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2017
Geng told reporters that economic issues stemming between the U.S. and China should be "properly addressed through dialogue and consultation," though he did not comment on whether he found Trump's use of Twitter a useful tool for discussion.
"We don't pay attention to the features of foreign leaders' behavior," Geng said. "We focus more on their policies."
The Obama administration released a statement condemning North Korea's announcement Monday.
"We call on all states to use every available channel and means of influence to make clear to the [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] and its enablers that launches using ballistic-missile technology are unacceptable, and take steps to show there are consequences to the DPRK's unlawful conduct," State Department spokesman John Kirby said.