The United Nations Security Council has unanimously adopted Resolution 2356 to expand sanctions against North Korea. The sanctions will also be applied to officials, entities and military units handling ballistic missiles.
China and Russia, nations that have provided support to North Korea in the past, also voted in favour of the resolution put forward by Washington. However, Russian envoys stated that talks with a defiant Pyongyang must be resumed to find a political solution as further confrontation with North Korea could lead to serious consequences for the region. The sentiment was shared by the Chinese and American envoys.
Moreover, China’s UN envoy, Liu Jieyi, said after the vote that the crisis should be resolved through resumption of talks if North Korea scales down its nuclear program while the United States and South Korea simultaneously end their bilateral military exercises in the region.
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula and East Asia have intensified recently following successive ballistic missile tests carried out North Korea.