China and the U.S. have cooperated well on the North Korean nuclear issue. But recent U.S. actions puts this cooperation at risk.

To follow a common security approach that recognizes the interrelations and interdependencies between countries, Washington must step back and reassess the moral and practical implications of its foreign-policy commandment “Do as I say, Not as I do” when it comes to nuclear weapons.

Changing the goal from denuclearization to resuming talks is something worth trying, since other options are becoming dead ends or getting increasingly risky.

The proposal from Beijing and Moscow could push the Korea nuclear crisis out of its dead-end. Yet there is a very long way to go for that to happen, considering the deep-rooted mutual prejudices, suspicions and the extreme lack of strategic trust.

Despite China’s best efforts as an intermediary, Pyongyang has obviously stood on the wrong side of history, against the will of the rest of the world by refusing peaceful engagement. But the six-party talks platform has not been built easily, and it remains the key to meaningful progress.

The Korean nuclear issue is the most complicated and uncertain factor for Northeast Asian security. It has now become the focus of attention in the Asia Pacific and even the world at large. Now, as the issue continues to heat up, one frequently raised question is: Why can’t China take greater responsibility and make North Korea stop its nuclear weapons program?

The current crisis is not an isolate event, but the result of 60 years of failed attempts to resolve the conflict. Relations among regional players have a key role, and improving strategic trust between China and the US would be a first step toward establishing enough trust to begin talks between the US and the DPRK.

Ironically, in launching its economic campaign to protest South Korean deployment of the THAAD anti-missile system, Beijing is effectively doing Washington’s bidding. U.S. policymakers long have worried about the PRC’s economic draw on the South. As China voluntarily curbs those ties, American officials couldn’t be happier.

Participants in the Six Party Talks can take four paths to progress: Make denuclearization of the Peninsula their collective top priority; make a military strike an option as talks resume; initiate peace treaty talks concurrently; and take confidence-building steps to make negotiations more inviting.

If the US should abandon or violate the Iranian nuclear accord, an agreement reached after years of negotiation and with consent of European allies, the results would only be negative for the US in terms of its international image, moral high ground and Trump’s start on diplomatic front. Such a move would signal to the world that the US cannot be trusted.