The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is moving to adopt a resolution to impose stronger sanctions to hit North Korea where it hurts, coal, iron ore and other mineral exports.
The UNSC is expected to approve the resolution this week, according to Yonhap News Agency. A vote is scheduled to take place Wednesday.
North Korea conducted its fifth and largest nuclear test on Sept. 9. Since then, the U.S. and its allies have called for tougher sanctions against North Korea; however, China, a North Korean ally and the primary importer of most of North Korea’s exports, has been hesitant to sign on.
China is now on board though. Diplomats said Wednesday that China and the U.S. had reached an agreement on the new resolution.
The sanctions are designed to close loopholes, namely the livelihood clause, in existing sanctions against North Korea and target the country’s exports, specifically coal, significantly reducing state earnings.
North Korea’s coal exports will be capped at $400.9 million or 7.5 million metric tonnes, whichever is lower, according to a copy of the draft resolution acquired by Reuters.
During the first 10 months of this year, China imported 18.6 million tonnes of North Korean coal, a 13 percent increase over the same period last year.
North Korea made $1 billion off its coal exports to China last year, and it stands to make even more this year. The new resolution stands to cut North Korea’s coal revenue by about $700 million.
The resolution also targets North Korean financial and maritime sectors, cutting another $100 million, and blacklists certain entities affiliated with North Korean exports.
The sanctions stand to reduce North Korea’s $3 billion annual revenue by about $800 million.
“On paper, new coal restrictions have the potential to notably curb a key source of North Korean export revenue,” Andrea Berger, the deputy director of proliferation and nuclear policy at Royal United Services Institution (RUSI), told NK News, “In practice, the significance of this measure will rest overwhelmingly on China’s reporting and transparency.”
While UNSC resolution 2270, which was adopted in March after North Korea’s fourth nuclear test, bans the export of North Korean coal, yet China has been importing coal in larger and larger quantities.
“Resolution 2270 bans DPRK’s export of coal, iron and iron ore, but also stipulates that export for the sake of people’s livelihood rather than the fund for nuclear and missile programs shall not be affected,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Friday, defending China’s actions, “China’s import of coal from [North Korea] complies with the resolution.”
Whether or not China upholds the new resolution and puts its weight behind the sanctions will determine their effectiveness. The threat of a nuclear North Korea is typically considered more palpable to China than instability and regime collapse. At the same time, China wants to be seen as a responsible international actor.
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