Beijing will stop US if it attacks North Korea first: Chinese media

Trump has tried to leverage China, North Korea's only major ally

State-run Chinese media has said that if the United States attacks North Korea, China will stop them.

An opinion piece in the Global Times said, "If the US and South Korea carry out strikes and try to overthrow the North Korean regime and change the political pattern of the Korean Peninsula, China will prevent them from doing so."

However, it also said that China will remain neutral if North Korea launches missiles that threaten US soil first and Washington retaliates back.

"China opposes both nuclear proliferation and war in the Korean Peninsula. It will not encourage any side to stir up military conflict, and will firmly resist any side which wants to change the status quo of the areas where China's interests are concerned. It is hoped that both Washington and Pyongyang can exercise restraint. The Korean Peninsula is where the strategic interests of all sides converge, and no side should try to be the absolute dominator of the region," the daily further said.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday had issued a fresh warning to North Korea, asking them to "get their act together" to avoid facing "fire and fury like the world has never seen."

Trump had said, "If North Korea does anything in terms of attacking us or our allies then they will be very very nervous as things will happen to them as like they haven't thought possible."

This stern warning of Trump had come hours after North Korea state media has released a detailed plan of the military to be presented before Kim Jong-Un to fire four ballistic missiles near the US Pacific territory of Guam, a major military hub and home to the US bombers.

Trump has also tried to leverage China, North Korea's only major ally, to get Pyongyang change its behaviour.