China's President Xi Jinping has told US President Donald Trump in a phone call that the hard-earned easing of tensions on the Korean peninsula must continue, Chinese state media reports.
Xi called for "joint efforts to keep up the hard-won momentum for the easing of the situation on the Korean Peninsula" and for creating conditions to restart talks, Xinhua news agency reported.
Unity on the issue was extremely important, Xi said, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
Trump reaffirmed China's role in the Korean issue and vowed to strengthen communication and co-operation with China going forward, Chinese state broadcaster CGTN reported.
Senior officials from 20 nations will gather in Vancouver later on Tuesday for a summit on curbing North Korea's nuclear ambitions, in a bid to increase diplomatic and financial pressure on Pyongyang to scrap its missile and nuclear programs.
Washington and Ottawa called the meeting to show international commitment to diplomatically solving the escalating threat from North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, Brian Hook, Director of Policy Planning, told reporters last week during a briefing at the US State Department.
It is hoped the summit can provide practical mechanisms to exert continued pressure on Pyongyang while demonstrating that diplomatic options remain open and viable, Hook said.
"We continue to explore all options to enhance maritime security and the ability to interdict maritime traffic (of) those transporting goods to and from the DPRK that support the nuclear and missile program," Hook said, referring to the North by an acronym for its official name.
China and Russia, two of North Korea's immediate and most influential neighbours, will not be in Vancouver.
Russia and China have a joint roadmap to resolve the crisis, which involves freezing any military activities held jointly by the US with Japan and South Korea, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters in Moscow.
