Obama Imposes New Sanctions on North Korea

President Barack Obama announced an executive action Wednesday to impose new sanctions on North Korea, just days after the country made threats to the United States regarding a hydrogen bomb.

The actions called for “blocking property of the government of North Korean and the Workers’ Party of Korea, and prohibiting certain transactions with respect to North Korea.”

A woman walks past a public television screen showing file footage of a North Korean missile, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, March 4. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has ordered the nation's nuclear arsenal readied for pre-emptive use at anytime in an expected ramping up of rhetoric following the U.N. Security Council's adoption of tough new sanctions on Pyongyang. (Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images)

“Today, the president issued an executive order imposing robust new sanctions on North Korea,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement. “This E.O. is part of our response to North Korea’s January 6 nuclear test and February 7 launch using ballistic missile technology, and it enables U.S. implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2270 and the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016.”

“These actions are consistent with our longstanding commitment to apply sustained pressure on the North Korean regime,” Earnest continued. “The U.S. and the global community will not tolerate North Korea’s illicit nuclear and ballistic missile activities, and we will continue to impose costs on North Korea until it comes into compliance with its international obligations.”