A Japanese daily says Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie has not ruled out the possibility of North Korea making further provocations.

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun said Saturday that Liang met with a group of visiting field-grade officers of Japan’s Self Defense Forces in Beijing. During the meeting, Liang said that it is hard to predict whether the North will seek further provocative actions.

The report said that Liang’s comment suggests that China is not ruling out the possibility that Pyongyang will make further provocative moves.

On a case where three Chinese civilians were killed by North Korean border guards at the border between China and North Korea, Liang said the matter has been resolved and that bilateral diplomatic relations have not been affected with the recent incident. He added that China would strongly urge its people not to cross the border into the North.