North Korean state media said on Friday that China does not hold the key to resolving the North Korean nuclear issue and accused the U.S. of deflecting responsibility for the tension on the Korean peninsula.

Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), criticized the U.S. for shifting the blame on to China in the aftermath of the test-launch of the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) Hwasong-14 on July 4.

“The key to solving the nuclear issue is not in the hands of China,” the daily newspaper said in a commentary entitled “Unscrupulous stratagem – which