USA sanctions North Korea over nuclear test

Samantha Power, the USA ambassador to the United Nations, thanked China for working on the language of the resolution, which she said will go after North Korea’s “illicit schemes”.

“In total, this resolution will slash by at least $800 million per year the hard currency that the DPRK has to fund its prohibited weapons programs, which constitutes a full 25 percent of the DPRK’s entire export revenues”. Exports of copper, nickel, silver, zinc and the sale of statues will also be either slashed or banned under the sanctions. Among the individuals named, Hwang Pyong-so was a party to the inter-Korean negotiations that led to an agreement on August 24, 2015, touted by the Park Geun-hye administration as its top achievement in North Korea policy.

The US sanctions announcement had accused Dandong Hongxiang of making up a “key illicit network supporting North Korea’s weapons proliferation”. Such sanctions could serve as a guidepost for unilateral actions against Pyongyang. But in this climate, Japan, America, and South Korea’s example of global cooperation against North Korea is “extremely significant”, according to a high-ranking official in Japan’s foreign ministry.

The nuclear experiment is believed to be the fifth and largest since Pyongyang started pursuing nuclear and ballistic missile programs, drawing condemnation from the worldwide community.

The release of today’s photo, a calculated propaganda move by Kim’ regime, merely adds more fuel to the fire.

The image, released by the state’s official news agency, shows dozens of artillery units lined up along one of Korea’s coasts.

He has also threatened to reduce Japan to “debris” and destroy America “in a moment”.

Cho did not provide any details about the new sanctions, or when they would be implemented. China controls the lifelines of North Korea’s economy, and Beijing’s basic plan to block powerful sanctions that could lead to the collapse of the Kim regime seems unlikely to change. “But they are still important because they add more heat to the increasing boiling sanctions on North Korea”. This provision especially targets Chinese companies who assist Pyongyang with banking.

South Korea also said it would ban entry from the South by foreign missile and nuclear experts if their visits to North Korea were deemed to be a threat to South Korean national interests. Japan and South Korea quickly made it clear to China that they meant to go along with the U.S.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged all countries to enforce the resolution.

Washington is reportedly considering imposing sanctions on Chinese steel companies that make use of cheap North Korean coal.