U.N. Imposes Harsh New Sanctions on North Korea Over Its Nuclear Program
Louis Charbonneau and Michelle Nichols | Reuters
North Korea faces harsh new U.N. sanctions to starve it of money for its nuclear weapons program following a unanimous Security Council vote on Wednesday on a resolution drafted by the United States and Pyongyang's ally China. The resolution, which dramatically expands existing sanctions, follows North Korea's latest nuclear test on Jan. 6 and a Feb. 7 rocket launch that Washington and its allies said used banned ballistic missile technology. Pyongyang said it was a peaceful satellite launch.
Seoul: North Korea Fires Short-Range Projectiles Into Sea
Hyung-Jin Kim | Associated Press
North Korea fired six short-range projectiles into the sea off its east coast Thursday, South Korean officials said, just hours after the U.N. Security Council approved the toughest sanctions on the North in two decades for its recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch. The firings also came shortly after South Korea's National Assembly passed its first legislation on human rights in North Korea.
The New UNSC Sanctions Resolution on North Korea: A Deep Dive Assessment
Andrea Berger | 38 North
UN Security Council Resolution 2270, passed on March 2, 2016, substantially shifts the multilateral sanctions regime on North Korea. It not only bolsters existing provisions, but also moves beyond sanctions that rest on determinations that a proscribed activity has taken place, such as arms-related proliferation. The resolution seeks to ensure that Pyongyang’s latest provocations are met by efforts to shrink the number of overseas locations from which North Koreans can facilitate illicit activity, and increase the cost of doing business in those countries.
North Korea’s ‘Military First’ Policy Threatens to Blunt Impact of Sanctions
Alastair Gale | Wall Street Journal
New U.S.-led efforts to cut funding for North Korea’s nuclear-weapons program through targeted sanctions risk faltering because of Pyongyang’s willingness to divert all available resources to its military, even at the risk of economic collapse, experts said on Thursday.
Pentagon Official Decries Russian Flights Over U.S.
Joe Gould | Defense News
A senior US intelligence official warned Wednesday that he has “great concern” about Russia’s intentions to fly sophisticated surveillance planes over the United States, saying it would give Russia “a significant advantage." Russia reportedly announced its intent to submit plans for the flights using advanced digital cameras under the 2002 Open Skies Treaty. With more than 30 signatories, including Russia, the US and the European Union, the treaty established a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights giving all participants the ability to gather information about military forces and activities of concern to them.
Japan's Nuclear Refugees Face Bleak Return Five Years After Fukushima
Minami Funakoshi | Reuters
Tokuo Hayakawa carries a dosimeter around with him at his 600-year-old temple in Naraha, the first town in the Fukushima "exclusion zone" to fully reopen since Japan's March 2011 catastrophe. Badges declaring "No to nuclear power" adorn his black Buddhist robe. Hayakawa is one of the few residents to return to this agricultural town since it began welcoming back nuclear refugees five months ago.