EU to threaten North Korea as it pushes China to ‘ratchet up pressure’ to stop World War 3
BORIS Johnson has backed other foreign ministers in a plan to impose fresh sanctions on North Korea in a bid to cripple the country’s expanding nuclear programme.
Boris Johnson on EU’s role in applying pressure on North Korea
The Foreign Secretary detailed the effort that will dismantle vital sources of revenue that is currently being poured into Pyongyang’s weapons programme.
He said: "North Korea continues to pose an unacceptable threat to the international community, which is why the UK, working closely with our European allies, has secured a set of stringent new sanctions upon the regime.
"As I have said before, the North Korean regime must bear full responsibility for the measures that the international community is enacting against it, including these sanctions.
"Maximising diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea is the most effective way to pressure Pyongyang to halt its illegal and aggressive actions."
The current ban on EU investment into the hermit kingdom will be strengthened and exports of oil will cease in a bid to stop the escalating world tensions from despot leader Kim Jong-un.
The new sanctions will also include new restrictions on North Korean workers in the EU in an effort to destabilise the current flow of money heading to the isolationist nation.
Further countries are set to follow Britain in the plan to put an economic squeeze on Pyongyang.
Speaking ahead of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, Boris Johnson said it was time for the Chinese to “ratchet up pressure" on North Korea, and stop buying oil from from the nation.
World efforts to diffuse the palpable nuclear tension imposed by North Korea come at a time Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump find themselves locked in a war of words.
Pyongyang has declared it is on the “brink of war” because of Trump as it sends another threat to the US President amid World War 3 fears.
North Korea accused Trump of being a “war merchant” for abusing the arms trade for “world domination”.
Trump advisor: Kim Jong-un doesn’t realise how serious we are
Trump requires “serious attention” after threatening the “total destruction” of North Korea, the hermit kingdom said.
Through the state-run Korean Central News Agency, the rogue nation claimed the Korean peninsula is on the “brink of war” because of Trump’s “intent to open up markets for military hardware”.
It comes after Kim Jong-un’s regime sent a chilling warning shot to the President, telling him the “US mainland will be reduced to ashes”.
General Barry McCaffrey recently shocked a television interviewer when he revealed a “war is scheduled” with North Korea.
The retired general said the US would be at war with the rogue state “by next summer” in an NBC interview.
General McCaffrey said: “The problem is we’ve got so many crises going on now, potentially, that he’s overloading the diplomatic effort, as well as the US armed forces’ ability to deal with it.
"I don’t want us to take our eye off North Korea.
"The current language out of the administration, that lack of a diplomatic and serious engagement strategy, in my view, has us sliding toward war by next summer.
"This war is on schedule under this administration."