UN, US, EU, and Switzerland impose tough new sanctions on North Korea as a result of its nuclear programme

March 7, 2016 By Sunny Mann (UK), Philippe Reich (Switzerland), Ross L. Denton, Steven F. Hill, Hannah N. Zarkar and Joseph A Schoorl 4 Mins Read

Introduction

Following the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (“DPRK” or “North Korea“) latest nuclear test and rocket launch on 6 January 2016 and 7 February 2016 respectively, the UN Security Council (“UNSC“) unanimously adopted Resolution 2270 (2016) (the “UN Resolution“) on 2 March 2016.

The UN Resolution contains far-reaching sanctions aimed at cutting off funds for DPRK’s nuclear and other banned weapons programmes, whilst avoiding “adverse humanitarian consequences” for civilians. The UN Resolution adds sectoral sanctions, broadens the scope of the existing financial sanctions and arms embargo, imposes new measures targeting proliferation networks, and expands the list of designated individuals and entities.

President Signs New North Korea Sanctions Bill into Law

February 19, 2016 By Maria H. van Wagenberg, Paul Amberg (Spain) and Meghan Hamilton 4 Mins Read

On February 18, 2016, the President signed into law the “North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016” (H.R. 757) (the “NKSPEA”), which passed Congress by an overwhelming majority in the U.S. House of Representatives and a unanimous vote in the U.S. Senate. NKSPEA sets out several new sanctions against North Korea, including the following: 1. Blocking of the Government of North Korea: Section 104(c) of NKSPEA requires imposition of a “blocking” order (i.e., asset freeze)…

US Government Issues New Executive Order Targeting North Korea

January 3, 2015 By Joseph A Schoorl 3 Mins Read

On 2 January 2015, US President Barack Obama issued a new Executive Order (“the Order”) authorizing the imposition of additional sanctions targeting the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (“North Korea”). According to a Press Release issued by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), the Order is being issued in response to recent cyber-attacks targeting Sony Pictures Entertainment that were allegedly carried out by the Government of North Korea. Simultaneously, OFAC announced…

US Government Issues General License Authorizing Wind-Down Activities Involving Crimea

January 1, 2015 By Kathryn J. Anderson 2 Mins Read

On December 30, 2014, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued General License No. 5 to authorize certain otherwise prohibited activities necessary to wind down operations involving the Crimea region of Ukraine, which has been occupied by Russia since March 2014. OFAC’s announcement is available here. The general license follows the December 19, 2014 issuance of Executive Order 13685, which imposed comprehensive sanctions on Crimea and provided the authority for blocking certain persons…

US Sanctions against North Korea

Introduction