Security Council Members Agree on N. Korea Sanctions

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council have agreed on a draft resolution to step up sanctions against North Korea in response to its nuclear testing, the BBC reports. With Japan and South Korea also on board, passage by the full 15-member council is all but assured. The US envoy called the 34-point draft “very strong.”

The resolution would call on UN member states to inspect North Korean ships for equipment that could help build nuclear weapons, and would strengthen economic sanctions against Pyongyang. North Korea recently promised to use its nuclear weapons to launch a “merciless offensive” if provoked. (More North Korea stories.)