North Korea, already a poor nation with many of it’s citizens starving to death, is not going to do well with sanctions increased even further.
Although the U.S. had to compromise and get less sanctions than they would have liked to get, they did get Russia and China support, so that was a victory in itself.
The lighter sanctions are most likely not going to persuade North Korea to stop their nuclear program, but Nikki Haley has done a good job getting the UN to unite and unanimously vote to move in the right direction.
It is reported that Pyongyang is gearing up and likely to respond with a missile test in the next few days.
From The Hill
The United Nations Security Council reportedly voted unanimously on Monday to increase sanctions against North Korea after the threatening state launched its latest nuclear weapons test earlier this month.
The sanctions resolution, which was drafted by the U.S., signals that the Security Council is stepping up its efforts to pressure Pyongyang to back off its weapons programs, stacking up additional sanctions after also voting unanimously last month to impose severe financial penalties.
The resolution takes aim at imports, Bloomberg reported, cutting off refined petroleum products to 2 million barrels a year while also banning textile exports.
The resolution also reportedly gives countries the right to freeze assets of cargo ships if their operators refuse to comply with to inspections on the high seas.
The newly added penalties come just one week after North Korea carried out its sixth and largest confirmed nuclear test.
President Trump, who has grown vocally frustrated with China’s failure or refusal to rein in Pyongyang, has repeatedly stated that “all options” are on the table when it comes to dealing with leader Kim Jong-un.
“This regime has signaled its contempt for its neighbors, for all members of the United Nations and for minimum standards of acceptable international behavior,” Trump said in late August after a launch over Japan ignited further fear that country aims to spark a conflict.
Bloomberg reported:
The United Nations Security Council approved new sanctions aimed at punishing North Korea for its latest missile and nuclear tests after the U.S. dropped demands such as an oil embargo to win support from Russia and China.
The 15-member council passed the resolution unanimously Monday following a week of talks that began when Kim Jong Un’s regime tested its most powerful nuclear bomb. The resolution seeks to cut imports of refined petroleum products to 2 million barrels a year, ban textile exports and strengthen inspections of ships that are believed to be carrying cargo in breach of sanctions.
“We are acting in response to a dangerous new development,” U.S. envoy Nikki Haley told the Security Council after the vote. “These are the strongest measures ever imposed on North Korea,” she said, adding that the U.S. remains willing to act alone to stop Kim’s nuclear program if necessary.
North Korea has yet to respond to the sanctions. South Korea said Tuesday that the isolated state remained technically prepared to perform a nuclear test. Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon told parliament that while dialogue is ultimately the only solution, it’s not time to talk with North Korea.
While the U.S. can claim a victory in persuading Russia and China — which hold veto power on the Security Council — to agree to the restrictions, the result is less than Haley had sought when she pushed for a ban on oil and a freeze on Kim’s assets abroad. And it’s unlikely to persuade Kim to halt his nuclear program and return to the negotiating table.
“Despite the tough talk, the U.S. is willing to water down its demands to get support of Russia and China, and that is a calculation that we are more influential when there is Security Council unity,” said George Lopez, a professor of peace studies at the University of Notre Dame and a former UN expert on sanctions against North Korea.
Bill Richardson, a former U.S. ambassador to the UN said the sanctions were “better than nothing, but not enough to really pressure North Korea,” adding that Pyongyang is likely to respond with a missile launch in the next few days.
“It’s a partial victory,” Richardson said Tuesday on Bloomberg TV. “China has decided to hurt North Korea, but not bring them down, not really weaken them.”
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