BEIJING – China has reportedly moved 150,000 troops and medical supplies to its North Korean border fearing a refugee crisis in the event of US airstrike, a South Korean news agency claimed on Tuesday.
As the United States announced its independent North Korean behaviour and moved the United States Navy’s nuclear-powered Calvinus (CVN-70) carrier class to Singapore, Korean news agency Chosun said “the Chinese army has deployed about 150,000 troops in two groups to prepare for unforeseen circumstances”.
The reason behind these “military options”, such as preemptive attacks on North Korea, is like the one the United States launched on Syria.
The Chinese ‘deployment’ comes after one of President Trump’s military advisers confirmed they have been asked to come up with a list of options to smash North Korea’s nuclear threat.
Japan’s daily newspaper Sankei said it was taken in China as “warning” of a possible attack on North Korea.
Trump and his team met with China’s President Xi last week and North Korea’s nuclear programme was top of the agenda alongside trade.
But it remains a highly sensitive topic in China, and according to Sankei, China’s state news service Xinhua made no mention of North Korea whatsoever in its report on the talks.
But over the weekend, reports spread via Chinese social media that medical supplies and support troops were being sent to the border of North Korea.
One picture shared widely online claimed to show a line of military trains moving around Shenyang, a city just over 200 miles from the North Korean border.
Submarine fleets have also been sent to the area, it was reported.
