UN Council imposes new sanctions against North Korea

The UN Security Council on Wednesday adopted a resolution to impose new sanctions on North Korea in order to curb that country's nuclear and missile programmes.

The resolution was unanimously adopted by the 15 members of the council on Wednesday in response to North Korea's nuclear test on January 6 and satellite launch on February 7.

The council condemned in the strongest terms the nuclear test on January 6, which was "in violation and flagrant disregard of the Council's relevant resolutions," and further condemned the country' s satellite launch on February 7, which "used ballistic missile technology," according to the resolution.

The council reiterated its demands that North Korea abandon all nuclear weapons and other nuclear programmes as well as weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes.

The resolution expanded the sanctions regime against North Korea by imposing a ban on all exports of coal, iron, iron ore, gold, titanium ore, vanadium ore and rare earth metals from Pyongyang, and banning the supply of all types of aviation fuel, including rocket fuel, to the country.

The sanctions in Wednesday's resolution are the fifth round of the kind imposed against Pyongyang since 2006.