WASHINGTON – Chinese President Xi Jinping is urging restraint in the face of a possible nuclear test by North Korea.
Xi’s call to President Donald Trump also comes as U.S.’s United Nations envoy warns of a strike if Pyongyang attacks a U.S. military base or tests an intercontinental ballistic missile.
Signs suggest that Pyongyang could soon conduct its sixth nuclear test since 2006 or the latest in a rapid series of missile tests. The North is seeking to develop a nuclear-tipped missile that could reach the U.S. mainland.
In Washington, the Trump administration has invited the entire 100-member Senate for a briefing Wednesday on the escalating crisis. Adding to the atmosphere of animosity, officials say North Korea has detained a third U.S. citizen, a 58-year-old accounting teacher.