UN council adopts tougher NKorea sanctions

The United Nations Security Council on Friday unanimously approved expanded sanctions and a trade and arms embargo against North Korea over its May 25 nuclear test.

All 15 members endorsed a draft resolution sponsored by Britain, France, Japan, South Korea and the United States.

The sanctions resolution bans all weapons exports from North Korea and most arms imports into the communist state. It authorizes U.N. member states to inspect North Korean sea, air and land cargo, requiring them to seize and destroy any goods transported in violation of the sanctions.

The United States envoy to the U.N. welcomed the Security Council's passage of an "unprecedented" resolution expanding sanctions on North Korea.

"We're very pleased the Security Council just within an hour and a half passed a brand new resolution," U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice told a White House briefing. She called the resolution "unprecedented" and "innovative" with a sanctions regime that has "teeth that will bite."

Both China and Russia, which had been reluctant to support punitive measures against North Korea in the past, supported the U.S.-drafted resolution, which is now binding under international law.

China's U.N. ambassador, Zhang Yesui, said the U.N. resolution demonstrated the "firm opposition" of the world to Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions and urged North Korea to end its nuclear weapons program.

"We strongly urge the DPRK to honor its commitment to denuclearization, stop any moves that may further worsen the situation and return to the six party talks," Zhang told the U.N. Security Council, using the acronym for North Korea's full name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

We strongly urge the DPRK to honor its commitment to denuclearization, stop any moves that may further worsen the situation and return to the six party talks

Chinese U.N. ambassador Zhang Yesui

Unified action

"We believe that this unified action by the Council represents a very significant step in response to what the North Korean government has been doing," Britain's deputy U.N. ambassador Philip Parham earlier told reporters Friday ahead of the vote.

He expressed hope that the resolution would encourage Pyongyang "to abandon its current track and take the path of constructive engagement."

Earlier this week, United States ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice said the resolution will send the message that "North Korea's behavior is unacceptable."

It would also signal that North Korea "must pay a price, return without conditions to a process of negotiation and that the consequences they will face are significant."

The draft "condemns in the strongest terms" the North Korean nuclear test and "demands that North Korea not conduct any further nuclear test or any launch using ballistic missile technology."

It declares that Pyongyang "shall abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner and immediately cease all related activities."

But U.S. intelligence officials have reportedly warned President Barack Obama that Pyongyang intends to respond to a U.N. resolution condemning its actions with another nuclear test.

We believe that this unified action by the Council represents a very significant step in response to what the North Korean government has been doing

British deputy U.N. ambassador Philip Parham

Possible NKorean reaction

Asked about how the Council would react to any new North Korean test, Parham said: "We would take it badly. But we can't speculate now (on the council response). Our emphasis has to be on implementing this resolution as effectively as possible."

North Korea is unlikely to respond militarily to planned U.N. sanctions over its nuclear test, but the possibility should not be completely dismissed, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday.

Former South Korean foreign minister Song Min-Soon warned this month that the North would continue to test nuclear weapons.

He forecast that the communist state was likely to carry on test-launching missiles of various ranges in a bid to improve their accuracy.

Japan said Friday that North Korea's only path to "survival" in the global community was to comply with the U.N. resolution expected later in the day and to cease its missile and nuclear programs.

The draft resolution requires the Stalinist regime to "immediately retract its announcement of withdrawal from the NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty)" and return immediately to the six-party talks on a nuclear-free Korean peninsula without precondition.

It also calls on member states to prevent the transfer of financial or other assets that could contribute to North Korea's nuclear or ballistic missile programs.

And it gives 30 days to a U.N. sanctions panel to extend a list of North Korean entities, goods and individuals to be subjected to an assets freeze and travel ban decreed in a 2006 resolution.

North Korea launched a long-range missile in April, which was roundly condemned by the Security Council. Pyongyang then retaliated by announcing May 25 that it had staged a second nuclear weapons test, following one in 2006.