Despite repeated calls from the United States for China to punish North Korea for its latest nuclear test on Friday, political and military analysts said Beijing cannot afford to rein in Pyongyang citing the grim alternative it would face if the North Korean regime collapses.

Shi Yinhong, a professor of International Relations at Renmin University in Beijing, said the US cannot rely on China to reverse the course of the North or pressure it to abandon its nuclear program. He said China would rather live with a nuclear-armed nation on its border than bear the chaos of a collapsed North Korea.

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Chinese analysts said the North relies heavily on China for food and oil, and Beijing is not about to cut its ties with Pyongyang.

Oil and food

"The United States cannot rely on China for North Korea," said Shi adding that "China is closer to North Korea than the United States."

Shi said the Chinese leadership is confident that the North's nuclear weapons would not be aimed at China and that as long as Beijing continues to supply Pyongyang with oil and food, it would be able to control its neighbor.

Political analysts said Beijing faces grim scenarios if China slaps sanctions on Pyongyang such as the piling of North Korean refugees to China and the eventual creation of a unified Korean Peninsula under a US defense treaty.

Worst case scenario

South Korea recently said it is preparing for the "worst-case scenario" and that its military is in place to defend itself against the North's nuclear test including targeting its leader, Kim Jong-un.

Washington and Seoul have agreed to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system on South Korean soil in 2017 to counter North Korea's nuclear tests.

China has vehemently opposed the agreement saying it would destabilize the peace and security in the region and that the anti-missile system might later be used to target on Beijing.

Political analysts said Beijing has become "lukewarm" in cooperating with the United Nations and the US in working on the denuclearization of Pyongyang with the THAAD deployment in Seoul.

US Defense Secretary Ash Carter has been quoted saying that China bears "great responsibility" for North Korea's nuclear test as it urged Beijing to use its influence and double its pressure on the isolated nation to halt its nuclear tests. 

TagsTHAAD, North Korea, Nuclear Tests, United States, china