Malcolm Turnbull is keeping the pressure on China to cut off North Korea's economic lifeline and stop the reckless regime from threatening the region.
The prime minister denied he was over-estimating the influence of Beijing on the Kim Jong Un - having discussed the issue of North Korean aggression with Chinese officials for years.
He has also raised the matter with the Chinese leadership since taking office.
"China, if it wishes to, it can cut off North Korea's economic lifeline to the world," he told ABC radio on Wednesday.
He admitted the Chinese will say the North Korean leader is difficult to deal with and hard to order around.
But it has the leverage to work with the dangerous regime.
"The eyes of the world are on Beijing," he said.
US President Donald Trump and his deputy Mike Pence have both issued stern warnings to Pyongyang as tensions continue to simmer between the two nations.
North Korea's latest missile test fizzled over the weekend, but it conducted two nuclear test explosions and 24 ballistic missile tests last year.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has said "you'd have to be a fool" not to be worried about what was happening in North Korea.
He warned nobody could take a backward step in dealing with the rogue nation.
