China’s unwillingness to enforce sanctions against North Korea and its “hostile activities” toward South Korea are pushing Seoul and Washington closer together, President Yoon Suk-yeol said Tuesday.

The remarks came after Beijing criticized the results of last week’s U.S.-ROK summit, at which the two countries’ announced the new Nuclear Consultative Group to bolster the joint execution and planning of U.S. nuclear operations against Pyongyang.

“If China wishes to raise objections against and criticize South Korea and the U.S. [announcing] the Washington Declaration, as well as upgrading the security cooperation into a nuclear-based one, it has to help lessen [DPRK] nuclear