Tillerson urges China to 'use all available tools' to rein in N. Korea

"Secretary Tillerson also highlighted the increasing threat posed by North Korea's nuclear and missile programs and urged China to use all available tools to moderate North Korea's destabilizing behavior," State Department acting spokesman Mark Toner said in a statement.

The talks came less than a week after North Korea test-fired a newly developed intermediate-range ballistic missile in its first provocative act since Trump came into office.

During the meeting, Tillerson and Wang also noted last week's phone call between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, and discussed efforts to advance bilateral cooperation while addressing differences in a constructive manner, Toner said.

They also discussed the need to create a level playing field for trade and investment, he said.

China's Xinhua news agency said that Tillerson "reiterated the U.S. stance to abide by the one-China policy" of diplomatically recognizing only Beijing, not Taiwan.

Trump had raised questions about whether the U.S. should stick to the policy when China has been engaged in unfair trade and currency practices hurting American businesses, and failed to exercise enough pressure on North Korea to rein in the provocative regime.

But Trump agreed to honor the policy in the phone call with Xi last week.

The Trump administration has been putting together a new policy on North Korea.

Details are scarce, but a key element of the new policy is likely to pressure China to exercise more of its leverage as the North's main food and energy provider to rein in the provocative regime.

Tillerson has strongly hinted at the possibility of imposing secondary sanctions on Chinese firms doing business with North, saying the threat or use of sanctions may be necessary to force North Korean leaders, and those that support them, to reassess the costs and benefits of continuing current policies.

China is North Korea's last-remaining major ally and a key provider of food and fuel supplies. But it has been reluctant to use its influence over Pyongyang for fears that pushing the regime too hard could result in instability in the North and hurt Chinese national interests.

Beijing often increased pressure on the North in the past, especially when Pyongyang defied international appeals and carried out nuclear and missile tests and other provocative acts, but it never went as far as to cause real pain to the North. (Yonhap)