China is uneasy about North Korea's ties with Russia, fearing it may embolden Pyongyang against its interests amid regional tensions.

The United States has information that North Korea is preparing additional supplies of ballistic missiles to Russia, as well as long-range self-propelled artillery and multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS).

With Kim’s escalating rhetoric about war with the South and the West, China needs its leverage to preserve peace in its backyard and cannot afford to be seen alienating its only treaty ally. This places China in a serious bind without any real options except to hope that the EU and U.