With North Korea continuing to develop missiles capable of striking the US, in violation of UN Security Council resolutions, the US secretary of state is expected to urge China to take tougher action to rein in North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme at a regional forum in the Philippines this weekend. Dean, SMU School of Social Sciences and Professor of Political Science James Tang, an international relations expert, commented that there was room for China to accept UN sanctions on North Korea as a part of the US push for more pressure on North Korea, since relevant parties were “dancing around” trying to avoid military action. “This is a delicate time,” he said. “China probably might come along a bit, but is probably not willing to push too far and threaten the collapse of the North Korean regime.”