President Donald Trump reveled in the possibility that the latest sanctions may hurt the North Korean regime under Kim Jong-un in an early Sunday morning tweet.
“I spoke with President Moon of South Korea last night,” Trump tweeted. “Asked him how Rocket Man is doing. Long gas lines forming in North Korea. Too bad!”
I spoke with President Moon of South Korea last night. Asked him how Rocket Man is doing. Long gas lines forming in North Korea. Too bad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 17, 2017
In response to recent provocations, specifically the test of a purported hydrogen bomb, the U.N. imposed new sanctions on the North. The sanctions follow a string of earlier sanctions designed to punish Kim Jong-un for his repeated missile tests. Since he took power from his father a few years ago, Kim has launched more missiles than his father and grandfather combined, advancing his country’s ballistic missile program at an accelerated rate.
“Combined with the previous Security Council resolutions, over 90 per cent of North Korea’s publicly reported exports of $2.7 billion are now banned,” a statement from the U.S. mission to the U.N. read. The new sanctions, declared to be the “strongest ever,” will reduce the North’s crude oil imports by 30 percent.
North Korea’s fuel prices have actually been running high since April, after rumors that a Chinese oil and gas giant had cut exports to the North. As there are few cars in North Korea, the idea of long gas lines may be somewhat exaggerated. At the same time, restricting North Korea’s energy imports is expected to have an impact.
In the aftermath of the U.N. decision to impose tougher sanctions on North Korea, the rogue regime threatened to beat the U.S. to death like a rabid dog, sink Japan into the sea, and wipe out South Korea with fire. The North then proceeded to fire a missile over Japan, demonstrating the ability to hit Guam during the test.
Kim signaled that his country will not be deterred by sanctions. “As recognized by the whole world, we have made all these achievements despite the U.N. sanctions that have lasted for decades,” the young dictator said after the test. He announced that the Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile is now ready for combat operations, adding that the North has nearly achieved its nuclear deterrence goals.
Trump stressed earlier this week that the U.S. and its international partners will likely be required to further increase the pressure on the North beyond the most recent sanctions.
“Those sanctions are nothing compared to ultimately what will have to happen,” he said Tuesday.
There is also a military option if diplomacy fails. “I have no problem kicking” the North Korea problem “to General Mattis,” U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley explained at a White House press briefing Friday.
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