China is preparing to impose independent sanctions on North Korea, according to a senior U.S. State Department official. The official in a press briefing held on Wednesday said China is in the process of developing its own implementation plan to impose sanctions on North Korea. | No more cognac for you, Kimmie! |
North Korea's international activities are apparently being strangled. The U.S. official said since the sanctions were imposed, the names of North Korean banks are found less frequently in some countries and North Korean enterprises are changing their names. He added ASEAN member states are also cooperating, having promised to enforce Resolution 1874.
Meanwhile, U.S. Senator Sam Brownback on Wednesday introduced a bill to relist North Korea as a country sponsoring terrorism and impose new economic sanctions. This bill envisages the U.S. Treasury Department banning transactions between American banks and foreign banks with a history of dealing with the North Korean government or senior North Korean officials. The bill also envisages the U.S. State Department returning North Korea to the U.S. terror blacklist, from which it was struck last October.