"When you are talking about a major, major conflict, what you are talking about is a nuclear war. Obviously, the goal now is to work as strongly as we can with China," Sanders said in an interview with CBS News.
The senator said China receives about 80 percent of North Korean exports.
"They are in a position to tighten the screws on North Korea and tell them they cannot continue their missile program or their nuclear program," Sanders concluded.
The situation on the Korean peninsula has become aggravated over recent months since North Korea carried out a series of missile launches and nuclear tests in violation with the UN Security Council resolutions.
The latest of these so-called provocations occurred on April 5, when a ballistic missile was launched from Sinpo, South Hamgyong province in the direction of the Sea of Japan, and on April 16, when another missile test was conducted, albeit unsuccessfully, according to South Korean defense officials.
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