They would also prohibit small arms and other conventional weapons sales to North Korea.
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The United Nations Security Council votes to approve a resolution that would dramatically tighten existing restrictions on North Korea at the United Nations Headquarters in New York March 2, 2016.
US Ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, said the new sanctions against North Korea go further than any UN sanctions regime in two decades, and are aimed at cutting off funds for its nuclear and other banned weapons programmes.
SHIPPING: A provision for mandatory inspections of cargo leaving and entering North Korea by land, sea or air is vaguely worded and some countries, such as China, could opt for lax enforcement.
Previously, nations only inspected planes and ships when they had “reasonable grounds”.
The two tests – a January 6 explosion that Kim Jong Un’s government called a “hydrogen bomb test”, a description experts have questioned; and a February 7 rocket launch widely regarded as a missile test – were roundly criticized by the global community.
These are the toughest sanctions placed on Pyongyang in the last 20 years.
The U.S.is sanctioning a dozen individuals and five organizations tied to North Koreas nuclear and weapons proliferation efforts. It also bans leasing or chartering of vessels or airplanes and providing crew services to the country, and registering vessels, while calling on States to de-register any DPRK owned or controlled vessels.
“So this set of sanctions is designed not to disrupt the general North Korean economy, which is based primarily on China and North Korea and their economic cooperation”, Elise says. “The resolution has a ban on the transfer to North Korea of any item that could directly contribute to the operational capabilities of its armed forces, such as trucks”.
Japan urged Pyongyang to take concrete steps to improve human rights in the country, Reuters reported.
The sanctions in Wednesday’s resolution represent the fifth round of sanctions imposed against Pyongyang since 2006.
The resolution has been unanimously adopted by all 15 members of the Council.
North Korea responded with a defiant display of military strength, launching a series of short-range projectiles into the sea off its east coast just hours after the resolution was adopted.
The resolution sends “a strong message from the worldwide community seeking peace on the Korean peninsula”, Park said.
That doesn’t mean that Beijing doesn’t have concerns as the Chinese envoy Liu Jieyi expressed his country’s concern over the possible deployment of the U.S.-made THAAD anti-missile system.
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The bill aims to protect North Koreans from the state’s widespread abuse laid out in a 2014 United Nations (UN) report – including the alleged political imprisonment of around 120,000 people. Foreign Minister Ri Su-yong accused the council of “politicization, selectivity and double standards” and of “singling out” North Korea for criticism.
