White House: Obama Issues Executive Order to Intensify Sanctions on North Korea

On Wednesday, March 16, the White House announced that Barack Obama, the President of the United States, has intensified sanctions against North Korea in response to its nuclear and missile tests through an executive order. According to Reuters, under this executive order, all North Korean assets in the U.S. will be seized, and the export of any goods from the United States to North Korea will be prohibited. This executive order also allows the U.S. government to sanction all individuals, both Americans and non-Americans, who are involved in transactions with key sectors of North Korea's economy. Experts have stated that these stringent sanctions increasingly expand the scope of U.S. sanctions against Pyongyang. According to the report, North Korea conducted a nuclear test on January 6 and also carried out a missile test on February 7. These nuclear and missile tests have provoked international reactions. Josh Earnest, the White House spokesperson, stated on Wednesday that the U.S. and the international community will not tolerate North Korea's illegal activities in the missile and nuclear domains and will increase the costs of such actions for the country until North Korea is compelled to fulfill its international obligations. U.S. officials had previously stated that broad sanctions against North Korea would not be effective unless China supported such sanctions. China is North Korea's largest trading partner. However, last month, China agreed to sanctions against North Korea. Peter Harrell, a U.S. Treasury official, said that the sanctions against North Korea have finally become serious. As the crisis on the Korean Peninsula escalates, Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, announced on Tuesday that Pyongyang will soon conduct tests of nuclear warheads and missiles capable of carrying these warheads.