Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) shakes hands with visiting US Secretary of State John Kerry prior to their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday. Kerry tried to urge China to increase pressure on North Korea following its latest atomic test. Photo: AFP

China agrees that the UN Security Council should take further action and pass a new resolution on North Korea, following its nuclear test earlier this month, but the new resolution should not stir up tensions or cause chaos in the peninsula, Chinese foreign minister said.

Addressing a press briefing Wednesday after a meeting with visiting US Secretary of State John Kerry, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the two countries reached a consensus that the Security Council could respond to the North Korea nuclear test by passing a new resolution, adding that his country is willing to maintain all-round and profound consultations with all the parties in a responsible way, including the US.

"We agreed that sanctions are not an end in themselves and it is vital to restart dialogue and negotiations," Wang said. "China refuses all groundless speculations and misinterpretations on its stance."

"The new resolution should aim to bring the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue back to the negotiating table, rather than stir up tension or cause chaos on the peninsula," Wang said, adding that China has voiced opposition to the latest nuclear test of North Korea, which has violated the UN Security Council resolution and threatened the international nuclear non-proliferation system.

China has been making unremitting efforts and playing an important role in realizing denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and safeguarding its peace and stability, but it calls for the concerted efforts of all parties to work toward the same direction, Hua Chunying, a foreign ministry spokesperson, told reporters.

"Some party's failure to do so is one major reason why the denuclearization process on the peninsula has run into difficulties, and the Six-Party Talks stalled. We hope that the relevant party would earnestly fulfill its due responsibilities, play a constructive role, work with China, and make constructive and positive efforts to bring the Korean nuclear issue back to the right track," Hua noted.

A Xinhua commentary on Wednesday said that it is unrealistic to rely merely on China to press North Korea, as long as the US continues an antagonistic approach wrought by a Cold War mentality, while refusing some of North Korea's rare goodwill gestures.

"Bear in mind that Sino-North Korean ties should not be understood as a top-down relationship, where the latter follows every bit of advice offered by the former," it said, adding that the fundamental solution is for the West to drop its animosity toward North Korea.