WELLINGTON, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand government on Thursday welcomed a United Nations Security Council resolution to strengthen sanctions on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
The move followed the DPRK's fifth nuclear test, conducted in September, which New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully strongly condemned as "a provocative and dangerous challenge to regional security."
"North Korea's actions have directly defied the UN Security Council, which has demanded that the country cease nuclear and missile tests," McCully said in a statement.
"The resolution adopted tightens the sanctions regime, in effect since 2006, and specifically targets North Korea's mineral exports, diplomatic activity, and transport links. The new sanctions will cap North Korea's coal exports at 40 percent of current levels, resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars in lost export earnings," said McCully.
"These are some of the strongest UN sanctions ever imposed and this reflects the international community's deep concern about North Korea's behaviour."
