US President-elect Donald Trump has lashed out at China for not exerting enough effort to rein in North Korea while taking advantage of trade with the US.  

In several tweets aimed at China on Monday, Trump heavily criticized Beijing saying it is not doing enough to control Pyongyang while largely benefitting from trade and commerce with the US.

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"China has been taking out massive amounts of money & wealth from the US in totally one-sided trade, but won't help with North Korea. Nice!," he tweeted.

'Currency Manipulator'

Weeks ago, Trump also took to Twitter to attack Beijing, accusing the country of being a currency manipulator and defending his phone conversation with Taiwan President Tsai lng-wen.

The row was further deepened after Trump accused China of building a military complex in the disputed South China Sea.

During his campaign, Trump reiterated that he would pressure China, Pyongyang's biggest trade partner and ally, to exert more influence over North Korea while at the same time, saying that he was willing to talk to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in an attempt to convince Kim to abandon his nuclear weapons program.

Missile Launches

"I would speak to him, I would have no problem speaking to him. At the same time I would put a lot of pressure on China because economically we have tremendous power over China," he told Reuters in May last year.

North Korea launched several nuclear tests and missiles last year. Recently, it announced that it would launch intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) this year as part of its development of nuclear weapons aimed at striking at the heart of the US mainland.

Trump said he did not believe that Pyongyang is capable of developing such a missile.

"North Korea just stated that it is in the final stages of developing a nuclear weapon capable of reaching parts of the US. It won't happen!," he wrote on Twitter.

TagsPresident-elect Donald Trump, Twitter, North Korea, currency manipulator, Kim Jong Un, One China policy, Sino-US trade relations, china, President Xi Jinping