Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi addresses the media during a news conference following his meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias (not pictured) at the Foreign Ministry in Athens, Greece, April 23, 2017. REUTERS/Michalis Karagiannis

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday urged all sides to ease tensions between North and South Korea and work towards a peaceful solution in the region.

“The most urgent task at the moment is the resumption of negotiations and all sides in the conflict must take part in this,” said Wang Yi, according to an interpreter, speaking after talks with his German counterpart in Berlin.

“Security and stability is quite fragile and there is a great danger that a new conflict, or incidents could happen at any time. Therefore we call all sides to be restrained and to avoid actions or words that could lead to new provocations,” he added.</s>BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping urged "restraint" on North Korea during a phone call on Monday (Apr 24) with US President Donald Trump, days before an American supercarrier is due to arrive in the Korean Peninsula.

The conversation came amid growing concerns that Pyongyang will conduct another nuclear or missile test to mark the 85th anniversary on Tuesday of the founding of its Korean People's Army.

"(China) hopes that the relevant parties can maintain restraint and avoid actions that would increase tensions in the Korean Peninsula," Xi said, according to a statement from the foreign ministry.

"The only way to realise denuclearisation in the Korean Peninsula and quickly resolve North Korea's nuclear problem is for each relevant party to fulfil its duties."

It was the second phone call between the two leaders since their summit at Trump's luxury resort in Florida early this month.

Speaking in Sydney on Saturday, US Vice President Mike Pence said the American aircraft carrier Carl Vinson would arrive in the Sea of Japan, bordering the Korean Peninsula, "in a matter of days".

The ship joined other warships for joint exercises with Japan in the Philippine Sea on Sunday.

Confusion has clouded the carrier group's whereabouts in recent days after President Donald Trump suggested the "armada" was steaming towards North Korea when in fact it was sent towards Australia.

Pence also renewed calls for Beijing - Pyongyang's only major ally and largest trade partner - to use its "unique" position to bring Pyongyang to heel.

"The steps we're seeing China take, in many ways unprecedented steps, bringing economic pressure to bear on North Korea, are very welcome," Pence said.

"We do believe China can do more."

In February, China announced it was halting all imports of coal from North Korea - a crucial earner for Pyongyang - for the rest of the year.

China also issued a stern warning earlier this month that a conflict over North Korea could break out "at any moment", as Pyongyang vowed a "merciless" response to any US military action.

The comments came ahead of a failed missile test coinciding with the 105th anniversary of the birth of North Korea's founder, Kim Il-Sung.

The North has ramped up its rhetoric in recent weeks, threatening to hit back against any provocation from the US and its regional allies, Japan and South Korea, which both host large American military contingents.

Before his latest conversation with Xi, Trump called Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking to him about the joint drill between the Carl Vinson and Japan's Maritime Self-Defence Force.

"I told him that we highly appraise US words and actions that show all options are on the table," Abe told reporters following the call.

"We completely agreed that we strongly demand restraint by North Korea, which has repeatedly taken dangerous provocative actions."</s>BERLIN, April 26 (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday urged all sides to ease tensions between North and South Korea and work towards a peaceful solution in the region.

"The most urgent task at the moment is the resumption of negotiations and all sides in the conflict must take part in this," said Wang Yi, according to an interpreter, speaking after talks with his German counterpart in Berlin.

"Security and stability is quite fragile and there is a great danger that a new conflict, or incidents could happen at any time. Therefore we call all sides to be restrained and to avoid actions or words that could lead to new provocations," he added. (Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Writing by Madeline Chambers; Editing by Michael Nienaber)</s>Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi speaks during a press conference after talks with German Foreign Minister at the Borsig villa in Berlin. BERLIN: China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged an end to US-South Korean military manoeuvres on Wednesday as well as a stop to North Korea's nuclear programme to calm tensions on the peninsula.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Channelnewsasia.com.</s>China's foreign minister told his Indonesian counterpart that China had urged Vietnam to "calm down" and respect China's sovereignty amid protests in Vietnam over Chinese oil drilling in a disputed part of the South China Sea.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi made the comments to Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa in a telephone call, the ministry said in a statement posted to its website on Wednesday.</s>Beijing: Chinese President Xi Jinping urged "restraint" over North Korea in a phone call with Donald Trump yesterday, even as Trump criticised Korea's "continued belligerence". Meanwhile, Japan joined exercises with an American supercarrier currently heading to the Korean peninsula.

"(China) hopes that the relevant parties can maintain restraint and avoid actions that would increase tensions," Xi said.

The conversation — the second since their summit this month - highlights rising concern in Beijing that tensions between Washington and Pyongyang could spiral into military conflict.</s>BERLIN, April 26 (Reuters) - Germany expects China to gradually open up its markets to foreign companies, Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Wednesday in Berlin where he hosted his Chinese counterpart.

"I have assertively said that for us Germans and Europeans it is clear that China must open its markets step by step and that we do not expect that China will become an open economy just like the German economy from one day to another," Gabriel said.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China would open up further to create a more friendly corporate environment for foreign investors. (Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Writing by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Madeline Chambers)
China's foreign minister Wang Yi calls for restraint and urges all sides to take part in the resumption of negotiations.