China blocked on Tuesday the publication of the UN expert panel's report that suggests North Korea and Iran have been sharing ballistic missile technology in violation of UN sanctions, diplomats said.
China rejected on Wednesday reported allegations by UN diplomats that it was a trans-shipment point for banned nuclear missile technology between North Korea and Iran.
UN diplomats said in the report, obtained by Reuters over the weekend, that North Korea appeared to have been exchanging ballistic missile technology and expertise with Iran in violation of security council sanctions.
The report did not identify China, but said North Korean-Iranian missile trade went via a country neighbouring North Korea, which diplomats at the United Nations told Reuters was China.
"I completely deny such a view," assistant Chinese foreign minister Hu Zhengyue told reporters at a briefing. He did not elaborate.
Hu's response was stronger than those of foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu on Tuesday. In a faxed statement, she did not outright deny the report by a UN panel.
But she said the document did not have the authority of the security council and said China scrupulously upheld punitive UN measures against North Korea.
China blocked on Tuesday the publication of the UN expert panel's report that suggests North Korea and Iran have been sharing ballistic missile technology in violation of UN sanctions, diplomats said.
"On the issue of denuclearisation on the Korean peninsula, the Chinese position is crystal clear," Hu said. "We have nothing to hide."
Jiang said the UN report "does not represent the position of the security council, and nor does it represent the position of the relevant security council sanctions committee."
Statements that China was the trans-shipment site for banned cargo were anonymous accusations, said Jiang.
"I am not willing to make any comment about such claims from anonymous sources," she said. "But I can tell you that China is conscientious and responsible in enforcing security council resolutions."
If the UN report is true, it could underscore US concerns that China is not applying enough resources to detect and stop North Korea's illicit nuclear trade.
China is North Korea's only major ally, and its economic and diplomatic support has been important in shoring up its otherwise isolated neighbour. China also buys large amounts of oil from Iran, which is largely shunned by the West.
But China has also pressed North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons ambitions, and has supported security council resolutions that condemned North Korea for its nuclear tests and authorised sanctions.
The report was submitted to the security council last week by a UN panel of experts, a group that monitors compliance with UN sanctions imposed on North Korea after it conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009.
The UN sanctions included a ban on trade in nuclear and missile technology with North Korea, as well as an arms embargo. They also ban trade with designated North Korean firms and demand asset freezes and travel bans on some North Koreans.
But analysts have said China has failed to enforce rigorously the UN decisions.
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