As reports intensify on North Korea's progress in making nuclear weapons, former US defence secretary William Perry has openly criticised the Bush administration for 'losing control' of the situation, and warned that the two countries are rapidly drifting towards war.
That gives the world ample reason to closely watch China's latest shuttle diplomacy in finding a compromise between North Korea and the United States. Indeed, US officials have been working hard to persuade their counterparts in Beijing that they are really bedfellows - North Korea's nuclear ambitions are as much a threat to China as to the US and other countries. America also wants China to share the same dream - to pressure North Korea into giving up its nuclear programme.
After months of siding with North Korea in insisting that the US and the North hold bilateral talks, China shifted its position and hosted a tripartite meeting in Beijing in April. But there was no progress and the situation has worsened.
In an unusual move last week, China's vice-minister of foreign affairs, Dai Bingguo, was dispatched to North Korea as President Hu Jintao's special envoy. Mr Dai engaged in an 'in-depth discussion on issues of mutual concern' with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, while delivering a personal letter from Mr Hu. This may have been enough to convince North Korea to come back to the three-way dialogue.
Mr Dai then flew to Washington and was received by US Vice-President Dick Cheney and a host of officials, with Secretary of State Colin Powell expressing appreciation 'for the tremendous effort China has put into this matter'. However, under the surface, it is clear that China's road map for the Korean peninsula is not quite the same as the one drawn in Washington. There are clear and potentially troubling differences.
First, China has its own take on the meaning of multilateral talks. The Bush administration has repeatedly stated it is a matter of principle that new talks must expand to include South Korea, Japan and possibly Russia. But China has never clearly endorsed such a principle. Instead, it emphasises that the multilateral talks are just one of many formats, and what matters is substance.
Second, China opposes sanctions or other punitive measures against North Korea. While the US has been actively seeking international support in pressing North Korea, China has refused to co-operate. It did not attend the US-sponsored, 11-country meeting in Australia which discussed interdiction and blockade measures against North Korean ships and planes, actions that the regime regards as a declaration of war.
