By Joel Wuthnow
On Friday, the UN Security Council unanimously passed its latest round of sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), ending weeks of negotiations on how to respond to the DPRK’s February 12th nuclear test. China’s affirmative vote is a sign of growing tolerance in Beijing regarding the use of extensive sanctions. However, the real test is whether China actively implements these new sanctions—and history provides reasons to doubt that China will do so.
The new resolution offers the latest in a series of escalating Security Council measures directed against the DPRK since 2006. Of note, it includes new language mandating that states tighten financial restrictions and proposes details on how states should conduct inspections of suspected cargo carried by North Korean vessels. It also proscribes transfers of several items, ranging from nuclear-related technologies to luxury goods.
Some analysts have asserted that China’s support for these measures signals a rethinking in Beijing about how best to handle relations with Pyongyang. CATO Institute scholar Ted Galen Carpenter has argued that China’s cooperation in crafting the resolution indicates Beijing’s frustration with North Korea’s “unpredictable, disruptive behavior,” and concern about the “potential for a major crisis in East Asia that such behavior could trigger.” Paul Haenle, a former National Security Council official, has similarly stated that some in China are asking, “Is North Korea more of a liability than a benefit?”
Read the full story at The Diplomat