New sanctions on North Korea to target weapons proliferation

NEW YORK, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- The United States submitted a resolution to the U.N. this week calling for new sanctions on North Korea, including specific measures related to North Korean ships.

The sanctions that could be enforced if the resolution is passed would add 28 North Korea entities to a black list for their role in proliferating weapons of mass destruction, South Korean news service News 1 reported.

Entities on the list include Pyongyang's Reconnaissance General Bureau, responsible for secret operations and the National Aerospace Development Administration, in charge of satellite development in the North.

The Reconnaissance General Bureau in the past has allegedly been involved in assassination plots against high-profile defectors in the South, the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan, and the cyberattack on Sony Pictures in 2014.

The resolution is being circulated among the 15 countries that are members of the U.N. Security Council.

Some details of the resolution are heavily dependent on China and Russia for enforcement. North Korean airliners and other aircraft suspected of carrying banned cargo from Pyongyang can only be embargoed in the two countries, but Beijing and Moscow have been wary of imposing severe penalties on North Korea, which has been an ally, South Korean newspaper Hankyoreh reported.

North Korea has not issued an official response to the draft resolution, but in past instances when new U.N. sanctions were imposed, Pyongyang has stood its ground and insisted on its sovereign right to test nuclear weapons and launch "peaceful satellites," Newsis reported.

The resolution is mainly focused on halting North Korea's efforts to proliferate weapons, or transport the arms across international waters.

Japan's NHK reported Friday that the draft resolution includes the name of 30 North Korean ships that are to be banned from ports overseas.