China rhetoric

Pentagon cools North Korea, China rhetoric to avoid warmongering label

At the same time, the Pentagon is trying to lower its public profile regarding Navy ship transits through the South China Sea, which have provoked Chinese ire, as part of an overall administration effort to improve relations with Beijing so that it pressures Pyongyang to curb its nuclear weapons program.

The strategy comes in the wake of contradictory statements by President Donald Trump on his policy toward North Korea and growing tensions in the region over its nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.