Sanctions must strangle N. Korea missile plans

This first appeared in Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun:

The flow of money into North Korea, which is accelerating its nuclear and missile development, must be cut off, and the international net encircling that nation must be reinforced.

The U.N. Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution that strengthens sanctions against North Korea for defiantly conducting a nuclear test in September. The resolution set an upper limit of coal exports — North Korea’s largest source of foreign currency — at about $400 million. If the sanctions are rigorously implemented, the value of Pyongyang’s coal exports will shrink by about 60 per cent. The total value of North Korea’s exports, which is estimated at tabout $3 billion, also would fall about 25 per cent. This would be a major financial blow to the regime of Kim Jong Un.

In its resolution after North Korea’s nuclear test in January, the Security Council hammered out trade restrictions on mineral resources produced in that nation. However, the export of these resources for civilian use was allowed as an “exception,” so the brakes were not put on coal exports. We expect the latest resolution will plug this loophole.

What cannot be overlooked is the fact that two and a half months passed from the time of the nuclear test until adoption of the resolution. This is the longest time taken for such a resolution.

The cause of this delay was China’s reluctance through the entire process, even while the United States was working with Japan and South Korea to demand tougher sanctions.

The sanctions resolution obliges nations that import North Korean coal to report to the Security Council the volume they procure each month. These figures will be made public. It is essential that China earnestly follows this requirement, given that almost all North Korean coal exports go there.

It also is possible North Korea, enraged by the sanctions resolution, will charge ahead with a ballistic missile launch or conduct its sixth nuclear test. It is crucial that Japan co-ordinates closely with the United States and South Korea and prepares for any North Korean military provocation.