U.N. Security Council Imposes New Sanctions on North Korea

December 23, 2017

New York- The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopted a new sanctions resolution against North Korea on Friday that could substantially restrain the isolated country's economic activity if strictly implemented.

The Security Council imposed the new sanctions in response to North Korea's latest launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile late last month.

This was the Security Council's 10th sanctions resolution against North Korea over its nuclear and ballistic missile development programs.

"We have leveled an unprecedented response" to North Korea's continued defiance of past Security Council resolutions, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said after the latest resolution was adopted.

In a statement, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called on all U.N. member states to fully implement Security Council resolutions against North Korea to achieve their shared goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

Abe also urged North Korea to comply with the resolutions and to act immediately to make the peninsula nuclear-free.

The latest resolution seeks to cap annual crude oil exports to North Korea at 4 million barrels or 525,000 tons.

The annual cap on supplies of refined oil products to North Korea will be reduced to 500,000 barrels from 2 million barrels, meaning that nearly 90 pct of such exports will be banned.

Shipments of crude oil and refined oil products should be exclusively for livelihood purposes of North Korean people and unrelated to Pyongyang's nuclear or ballistic missile programs, the resolution said.

The resolution warned that the Security Council will strengthen the restrictions on oil supplies further if North Korea conducts a further nuclear test or launch of a ballistic missile capable of reaching intercontinental ranges.

U.N. member states are authorized to seize, inspect and impound any ship in their ports or territorial waters suspected of being involved in violations of Security Council resolutions against North Korea.

The latest resolution seeks to ban North Korean exports of food products, machinery, electrical equipment, earth and stones, wood and vessels.

Haley said: "Previous resolutions banned 90 pct of North Korea's exports. This resolution bans all remaining categories of major North Korean exports, a loss of nearly 250 million dollars in revenue to the regime."

The resolution also demands U.N. member states repatriate North Korean workers within 24 months, instead of 12 months as first proposed. Jiji Press