Russia and China have proposed easing sanctions against North Korea in a UN resolution. The UN Security Council should “adjust sanctions against North Korea” if the country meets its requirements, the draft released yesterday (local time) said.
North Korea has been severely sanctioned by the United States and the United Nations for its nuclear program, and has recently asked for concessions from Washington. The draft resolution emphasized that North Korea must be accommodated for humanitarian reasons if the country requests exemptions from sanctions. In the proposal, Russia and China did not elaborate on what North Korea should do to ease sanctions.
However, both countries are calling for the end of conditions from 2016 and 2017 to improve the living conditions of people in North Korea. Among other things, the ban on certain raw material imports is to be lifted.
Beijing: „Restore Dialogue“
Beijing urged the UN Security Council to adopt the draft resolution. „Dialogue and contact should be restored as soon as possible to overcome the deadlocked negotiations and prevent the dialogue process from derailing or even declining,“ said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang.
The North Korean leadership had threatened in recent days to take a „new path“ in dealing with the United States and to come up with a „Christmas present“. Experts believe North Korea plans to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile on December 25.
