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| China Said to Back New Sanctions Against North Korea | China Said to Back New Sanctions Against North Korea |
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| HONG KONG — China has agreed to support a new round of United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea to punish it for the nuclear test it conducted in February, diplomats said late Monday, paving the way for an American-drafted sanctions resolution to be distributed to council members for a possible vote this week. | |
| Word that a resolution was moving forward apparently infuriated North Korea, which vowed to cut off the hot line with the United States military in South Korea, said it considered the 1953 truce that halted the Korean War null and void, and threatened to strike the United States with “lighter and smaller nukes.” | |
| The North Koreans have vowed many times before to retaliate for sanctions, however, and their latest admonitions, distributed via the official Korean Central News Agency, were largely seen as bluster. | |
| While embracing the sanctions efforts, the Chinese, North Korea’s main ally, probably did not go as far as the United States would have liked, diplomats said. | |
| The Security Council scheduled a late-morning meeting on the issue on Tuesday, and details of the new round of proposed sanctions were not immediately available. | |
| The support of China, with its Security Council veto power and economic ties to North Korea, is considered vital in terms of building international support for actions against North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs. China provides all of North Korea’s fuel and remains its biggest trading partner, but analysts believe that its influence on Pyongyang is nevertheless limited. | The support of China, with its Security Council veto power and economic ties to North Korea, is considered vital in terms of building international support for actions against North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs. China provides all of North Korea’s fuel and remains its biggest trading partner, but analysts believe that its influence on Pyongyang is nevertheless limited. |
| The sanctions, if approved, would be the latest U.N. action in response to North Korea’s weapons development. After the Security Council approved a round of sanctions in January in response to a North Korean rocket launch the month before, an increasingly belligerent Pyongyang threatened both the United States and South Korea militarily, and just weeks later detonated its third nuclear device. | |
| Previous rounds of sanctions have tried to curtail North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile ambitions by blacklisting trading and financial firms believed to be involved with such programs. The sanctions have also restricted the importation of luxury goods, an effort directed at the country’s ruling elite. | Previous rounds of sanctions have tried to curtail North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile ambitions by blacklisting trading and financial firms believed to be involved with such programs. The sanctions have also restricted the importation of luxury goods, an effort directed at the country’s ruling elite. |
| Diplomats have said that future rounds of sanctions could expand the number of entities that come under the sanctions umbrella and heighten enforcement, perhaps even through cargo inspections. | Diplomats have said that future rounds of sanctions could expand the number of entities that come under the sanctions umbrella and heighten enforcement, perhaps even through cargo inspections. |
| On Monday, the Russian ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, whose country currently holds the rotating Security Council presidency, said that the Council could approve a sanctions resolution this month. | |
| Gennady Gatilov, a Russian deputy foreign minister, said Tuesday that Russia could support sanctions that solely target North Korea’s advanced weapons systems. | Gennady Gatilov, a Russian deputy foreign minister, said Tuesday that Russia could support sanctions that solely target North Korea’s advanced weapons systems. |
| “It will be acceptable to us if the restrictive measures do not go beyond the boundaries of missile and nuclear issues,” he was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying. | “It will be acceptable to us if the restrictive measures do not go beyond the boundaries of missile and nuclear issues,” he was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying. |
| South Korean officials cautioned Tuesday that details of the proposed sanctions still needed to be worked out. | South Korean officials cautioned Tuesday that details of the proposed sanctions still needed to be worked out. |
| "Significant progress has been made, but no final agreement has been reached yet," said Cho Tai-young, a foreign ministry spokesman. | "Significant progress has been made, but no final agreement has been reached yet," said Cho Tai-young, a foreign ministry spokesman. |
Jane Perlez contributed reporting from | Jane Perlez contributed reporting from Beijing, Choe Sang-Hun from Seoul, South Korea, and Rick Gladstone from New York.. |