On June 14, the Chinese government published a new list of items the country would no longer export to North Korea, in a move clearly targeting the Kim regime. According to the Global Times, the list mainly covered materials that could potentially be used in the construction of nuclear or guided missiles, including ring magnets, maraging steel and magnetic alloys.
China has imposed limited trade sanctions on North Korea since April 5, initially limiting exports of aviation fuel and certain mineral ores in response to ongoing nuclear testing by Pyongyang.
An anonymous expert told the Global Times that the newly issued list of prohibited exports does not mean harsher sanctions, but merely the scheduled implementation of a UN resolution passed in March designed to stop North Korea’s nuclear and guided missile development program.
On June 15, Reuters cited claims made by the US’s Institute of Science and International Security that North Korea may already have constructed four to six nuclear missiles in the past 18 months, bringing its estimated total number of warheads to as many as 21.
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