UNSC adopts resolution sanctioning more N Korean individuals, entities

NEW YORK. KAZINFORM The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Friday to sanction more North Korean officials and entities, including a military unit handling ballistic missiles after the communist nation carried out a series of defiant missile tests, Kazinform has learned from Yonhap .

The 15-member council adopted Resolution 2356, adding a total of four entities and 14 officials to the sanctions list, including the North's Strategic Rocket Force. The United States drafted the resolution after weeks of negotiations with China.

The move came after a series of successful missile tests by North Korea that demonstrated steady progress in its pursuit of various types of missiles, with an eye toward a nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the U.S.

"The Security Council is sending a clear message to North Korea today: Stop firing ballistic missiles or face the consequences," U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley said after the vote. She later told reporters that it was "nice to see a unified council."

It was the seventh resolution the Security Council has adopted to impose sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs since its first nuclear test in 2006. The new resolution came six months after the previous resolution was adopted in November to punish the North's fifth nuclear test in September.

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