US Official: "UN Security Council to Vote on 'Additional Sanctions on North Korea' Within Days"

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] A senior U.S. administration official stated on the 25th (local time) that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is scheduled to vote within days on additional sanctions against North Korea led by the United States, according to major foreign media reports.

Since North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on March 24, the U.S. has prepared a new resolution to halve the annual export volumes of crude oil and refined petroleum products to North Korea to 2 million barrels and 250,000 barrels respectively, and has been discussing it with Security Council member states.

On the day before President Biden returned home after his visits to South Korea and Japan, North Korea fired three ballistic missiles, including an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), into the East Sea. Analysts interpret this as an expression of dissatisfaction with the North Korea-related responses from the South Korea-U.S. and U.S.-Japan summits, as well as the Quad summit.

Mark Lambert, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Korea and Japan, said at a briefing that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin, and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa held a phone call, and "all three ministers condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launches as clear violations of the UN Security Council."

He emphasized, "North Korea's continuous provocations pose a threat to all countries and regional peace and security," adding, "It is the duty of the entire international community to condemn North Korea's repeated violations of Security Council resolutions and to maintain their implementation."

UN spokesperson St?phane Dujarric also expressed regret in a press briefing on the same day regarding North Korea's missile launches, stating that they "will only serve to escalate regional and international tensions."