On June 17, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian clarified the point yet again, that China is not going to be a third party to the arms control talks, which are to begin between the U.S. and Russia on June 22. “As we have repeatedly stated, it is our clear and consistent position that China has no intention to take part in a trilateral arms control negotiation with the U.S. and Russia,” he said. “We have noted that the U.S. keeps dragging China into the New START extension issue between the U.S. and Russia. It is just the same old trick it plays whenever it seeks to shift responsibility to others “