China claims firm stance on North Korea

US Secretary of State John Kerry said he was reassured by China’s Foreign minister Wang Yi that Beijing was “very firm” with North Korea on ending its nuclear program, Reuters reported. Kerry said the reassurance was proof that China and the US were working together despite recent tensions over hacking information leaked by former US intelligence operative Edward Snowden. The statement was made at a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which included three-way talks about North Korea’s nuclear program between Japan, South Korea and the US.