12 April 2013
Mr Kerry's four-day tour of Asia comes amid speculation that North Korea is preparing for a missile launch.
The US said there was no evidence North Korea could deploy a nuclear-armed missile, contradicting a leaked report.
North Korea has reportedly moved at least two Musudan ballistic missiles to its east coast.
A flurry of warlike statements from Pyongyang has prompted speculation that it might launch a missile - possibly on 15 April, when the country marks the 101st birthday of the nation's founder and former leader, Kim Il-sung.
Though North Korean rhetoric has been more bellicose than usual, analysts say it fits a long-standing pattern, and may be intended to boost the popularity of Kim Jong Un, who came to power last year.
'Defuse this tension' On Friday, during a visit to the South Korean capital, Seoul, Mr Kerry said the US would protect itself and its allies, and that talks in Beijing would aim to "lay out a path that will defuse this tension".
"I think it's clear to everybody in the world that no country in the world has as close a relationship or as significant an impact on [North Korea] than China," he said.
Earlier, Mr Kerry warned North Korean against any launch.
"If Kim Jong Un decides to launch a missile, whether it's across the Sea of Japan or some other direction, he will be choosing wilfully to ignore the entire international community," he said.
"And it will be a provocation and unwanted act that will raise people's temperatures."
He said any launch would "further isolate his country and further isolate his people, who frankly are desperate for food, not missile launches."
"Kim Jong-un needs to understand - and I think he probably does - what the outcome of a conflict would be," Mr Kerry added.
That reach would put US bases on the Pacific island of Guam within range.
A declassified section of a report from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report had warned there was "moderate" confidence that Pyongyang had developed the technology to mount a nuclear warhead on a missile.
But Mr Kerry played down the report, and White House spokesman Jay Carney said Pyongyang had "not demonstrated the capability to deploy a nuclear-armed missile".
John Kerry to press China over North Korea
John Kerry: 'Kim Jong-un needs to understand... what the outcome of a conflict would be"
US
Secretary of State John Kerry is due in China, where he is expected to
urge Beijing to use its influence over North Korea to rein in its
belligerence.
Ahead of the visit, Mr Kerry said that a policy of denuclearisation shared by the US and China had to have "teeth".Mr Kerry's four-day tour of Asia comes amid speculation that North Korea is preparing for a missile launch.
The US said there was no evidence North Korea could deploy a nuclear-armed missile, contradicting a leaked report.
North Korea has reportedly moved at least two Musudan ballistic missiles to its east coast.
A flurry of warlike statements from Pyongyang has prompted speculation that it might launch a missile - possibly on 15 April, when the country marks the 101st birthday of the nation's founder and former leader, Kim Il-sung.
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“Start Quote
Diplomatic prowess will be required in Mr Kerry's conversation with the Chinese in Beijing”
Since the UN imposed fresh
sanctions on North Korea in February, its leadership has promised to
restart a mothballed nuclear reactor, has shut an emergency military
hotline to South Korea, and has urged diplomatic staff to leave, saying
it cannot guarantee their safety.
The North says it has also been angered by joint US-South Korean military exercises. Though North Korean rhetoric has been more bellicose than usual, analysts say it fits a long-standing pattern, and may be intended to boost the popularity of Kim Jong Un, who came to power last year.
'Defuse this tension' On Friday, during a visit to the South Korean capital, Seoul, Mr Kerry said the US would protect itself and its allies, and that talks in Beijing would aim to "lay out a path that will defuse this tension".
"I think it's clear to everybody in the world that no country in the world has as close a relationship or as significant an impact on [North Korea] than China," he said.
Continue reading the main story
Does North Korea have a nuclear weapon capable of being fired
on a ballistic missile? Someone in America's vast intelligence community
thinks the answer is "Yes" - well, "Probably, yes" as analysts do not
like absolutes.
They also think it would not be very reliable.
This is a deeply sensitive area and with recent history in mind, no-one wants to be accused of "sexing-up" intelligence.
The honest answer is that no-one outside of a small group of people in Pyongyang actually knows what capability North Korea has. It is also true that, as with most conflicts, there are always hawks and doves and people with competing agendas. For now at least this probably remains one of former US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's infamous "known unknowns".
Analysis
They also think it would not be very reliable.
This is a deeply sensitive area and with recent history in mind, no-one wants to be accused of "sexing-up" intelligence.
The honest answer is that no-one outside of a small group of people in Pyongyang actually knows what capability North Korea has. It is also true that, as with most conflicts, there are always hawks and doves and people with competing agendas. For now at least this probably remains one of former US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's infamous "known unknowns".
China, like the US, wanted denuclearisation, he said, adding: "If that's your policy, you've got to put some teeth into it."
The BBC's John Sudworth, reporting from Seoul, says Mr Kerry
is likely to tell Chinese leaders that unless they do more to rein in
North Korea, the US will be obliged to keep on focussing strategically
on the region - something that makes China nervous.Earlier, Mr Kerry warned North Korean against any launch.
"If Kim Jong Un decides to launch a missile, whether it's across the Sea of Japan or some other direction, he will be choosing wilfully to ignore the entire international community," he said.
"And it will be a provocation and unwanted act that will raise people's temperatures."
He said any launch would "further isolate his country and further isolate his people, who frankly are desperate for food, not missile launches."
North Korean television has been showing various celebrations despite its increasingly bellicose rhetoric
Continue reading the main story
Musudan missile
- The Musudan, also known as the Nodong-B or the Taepodong-X, is an intermediate-range ballistic missile. Its likely targets are Okinawa, Japan, and US bases in the Pacific
- Range estimates differ dramatically. Israeli intelligence suggests 2,500km, while the US Missile Defense Agency estimates 3,200km; other sources put the upper limit at 4,000km
- These differences are due in large part to the fact that the missile has never been tested publicly, according to the Center for Nonproliferation Studies. Its payload is also unknown
Russia, which has expressed
growing concern over North Korea, said on Friday that it had issued "an
urgent appeal" to Pyongyang "to refrain from actions which could lead to
further escalation of tension".
Some estimates suggest that the missiles North Korea has
moved to its east coast could travel 4,000km (2,500 miles), although it
is not believed that the Musudan has been tested before.That reach would put US bases on the Pacific island of Guam within range.
A declassified section of a report from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report had warned there was "moderate" confidence that Pyongyang had developed the technology to mount a nuclear warhead on a missile.
But Mr Kerry played down the report, and White House spokesman Jay Carney said Pyongyang had "not demonstrated the capability to deploy a nuclear-armed missile".
China's role
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