UN imposes tough sanctions on North Korea
On March 2, 2016, the UN Security Council unanimously approved further sanctions on North Korea. Critics have described the sanctions as the toughest in two decades. The sanctions are a result of growing anger at North Korea’s latest nuclear test and rocket launch.
“The international community, speaking with one voice, has sent Pyongyang a simple message: North Korea must abandon these dangerous programs and choose a better path for its people,” said President Barack Obama, in a March 2, 2016 statement from the White House.
According to the Toronto Star, the United States and China spent seven weeks negotiating the sanctions. Legislation includes mandatory inspections of cargo leaving and entering North Korean borders; bans on the sale and transfer of small arms and light weapons to Pyongyang; and expulsion for diplomats from the North who engage in “illicit activities.”
—Compiled by Sameer Chhabra