The Chinese government has ordered all North Korean companies based in the country to close as a result of UN sanctions over Pyongyang’s latest nuclear missile tests.

China’s commerce ministry said on Thursday that North Korean firms or joint ventures in China will be shut within 120 days of the UN decision, which was announced on 12 September.

The move comes amid intense international pressure on China to act to rein-in its neighbour.

Beijing had previously ordered banks to stop working with the North Korean regime following US concerns the Chinese government wasn’t being tough enough on the North Korean nuclear threat.

China is North Korea’s main trading partner, making the success of UN sanctions dependent upon Beijing’s cooperation, and the latest sanctions are a clear indication of China’s growing frustration at Kim Jong Un’s regime.

This week, North Korea said it was “inevitable” that its rockets would hit the US mainland in future, and said remarks by Donald Trump amounted to a “declaration of war”.

 

Read the whole story from The Independent.