UN Security Council to discuss new NK sanctions

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said on Thursday that the UN Security Council is discussing a draft on sanctions against North Korea in response to questions on whether China and the US have reached agreement on the issue.

It would be a big improvement if China and the US could reach an agreement on new UN sanctions on North Korea over the nuclear test issues, but China is unlikely to accept all the terms proposed by the US over humanitarian concerns, an expert said.

However, Reuters reported on Thursday that China and the US have reached an agreement on new sanctions, which aims to crack down on North Korea’s coal exports and lists new names for targeted sanctions of a global travel ban and asset freeze.

North Korea keeps ignoring China’s opposition to nuclear tests, which pose a great threat to China’s security and also affect Sino- South Korean and Sino- US relationships, Zheng Jiyong, director of Fudan University’s Center for Korean Studies, told the Global Times on Thursday.

It would be a big improvement if the US and China could reach an agreement. However, out of humanitarian concerns, China is unlikely to accept all the terms the US is proposing, said Zheng.

Russia is delaying action on the draft resolution, a senior diplomat was quoted by Reuters as saying, adding China could persuade Russia to agree to the new sanctions.

In March 2016, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 2270, which imposed the toughest sanctions against North Korea so far.