North Korea faces harsh new UN sanctions over nuke program

PanARMENIAN.Net - North Korea faces harsh new UN sanctions to starve it of money for its nuclear weapons program following a unanimous Security Council vote on Wednesday, March 2 on a resolution drafted by the United States and Pyongyang's ally China, Reuters reports.

The resolution, which dramatically expands existing sanctions, follows North Korea's latest nuclear test on Jan. 6 and a Feb. 7 rocket launch that Washington and its allies said used banned ballistic missile technology. Pyongyang said it was a peaceful satellite launch.

U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said the sanctions go further than any UN sanctions regime in two decades and aim to cut off funds for North Korea's nuclear and other banned weapons programs.

Two council diplomats said on condition of anonymity that the new resolution makes the North Korean sanctions regime even tougher than the Iran sanctions regime that they say led to a decision on Tehran's part to agree to an historic nuclear deal last year that led to most restrictions being lifted in January.

All cargo going to and from North Korea must now be inspected and North Korean trade representatives in Syria, Iran and Vietnam are among 16 individuals added to a UN blacklist, along with 12 North Korean entities.

Previously states only had to inspect such shipments if they had reasonable grounds to believe they contained illicit goods.

The White House said it was not clear how Pyongyang would react. The European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini welcomed the UN vote, saying the European Union would update the bloc's sanctions regime to include the new measures. Diplomats said that could be done as soon as Friday.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the 15-nation council's move, saying in a statement that Pyongyang "must return to full compliance with its international obligations."

North Korea has been under UN sanctions since 2006 because of its four nuclear tests and multiple rocket launches.