North Korea is regularly hit with UN sanctions but Donald Trump has repeatedly called for tougher action.
Today he revealed he would impose the “largest ever” economic attack on the hermit state, which relies heavily on outside assistance from allies Russia and China.
The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control today formerly announced the measures, which are designed to disrupt North Korean shipping and trading companies and vessels and to further isolate Pyongyang.
The Treasury also sanctioned one person, 27 companies and foreign 28 ships for breaking sanctions on North Korea.
The ships are located, registered or flagged in North Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Marshall Islands, Tanzania, Panama and Comoros.
Mr Trump, speaking at CPAC today, said: “Today I am announcing that we are launching the largest-ever set of new sanctions on the North Korean regime.”
Tough new sanctions, however, may jeopardise the latest detente between North and South Korea, whose relationship has warmed slightly in recent weeks due to the Winter Olympics, where the two countries’ athletes marched under a joint flag.
This is a developing story, more to follow…