China hopes N. Korea leader's summits with Trump, Moon will defuse tension

BEIJING – The Chinese government's top diplomat hopes that planned summits between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and the presidents of South Korea and the United States will "take the fuse" out of the situation on the Korean peninsula.

After a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, China's State Councilor Wang Yi said he hoped the summits would bring the issue of North Korea's nuclear program back into the realm of dialogue and negotiations.

"We all welcome and support the apparent improvement in the situation on the peninsula and appreciate the efforts of all parties," Wang, who is also China's foreign minister, said on Thursday, in comments posted on his ministry's website.

He hoped the three leaders would take the opportunity to completely defuse the situation, he added.