Korea

Here’s why North Korea’s economy is able to survive sanction after sanction

The Trump administration has sought to rein in North Korea’s nuclear program by passing tougher and tougher sanctions designed to punish its economy. A new study shows why that isn’t working.

A whopping 49 countries have violated UN Security Council sanctions imposed on North Korea between March 2014 and September 2017, according to a report from the Institute for Science and International Security, a nonpartisan Washington think tank focused on nuclear non-proliferation.

Drawing from UN data, the study found that countries ranging from poor and isolated nations like Angola to wealthier global powers like Germany have ignored a wide variety of measures banning economic activity and military ties with the hermit kingdom.

It’s already difficult for the US to pass harsh sanctions against Pyongyang at the UN because China and, to a lesser extent, Russia, have watered down or vetoed Security Council sanctions because they want to prevent North Korea from becoming too unstable or collapsing.