USA's sanctions over North Korea

Context: Recently, the US has imposed its first sanctions over North Korea’s weapons programs following a series of North Korean missile launches.

• These sanctions were aimed both to prevent the advancement of North Korea’s programs and to impede its attempts to proliferate weapons technologies.
• North Korea is continuing its missile program despite several UN Security Council resolutions and the international community’s calls for diplomacy and denuclearization.

US-North Korea Conflict

• During the Cold War era, (allegedly with the support of Russia and China) North Korea accelerated its nuclear programme and developed nuclear capabilities.
• During the same time, the US extended its Nuclear Umbrella (guarantee of support during a nuclear attack) to its allies i.e South Korea and Japan.
• North Korea withdrew from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 2003 and afterwards, under present leader Kim Jong-un, it increased nuclear missile testing.
• North Korea is barred from testing ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons under international law.
• In response to this, the US started deploying THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defence) in South Korea in March 2017.
• The territorial conflict which started between North and South Korea has transformed into a tussle between the US and North Korea.
• Following the failure of diplomatic efforts to improve relations with North Korea, the US has imposed sanctions.

India’s Stand

• India has consistently voiced its opposition to North Korean nuclear and missile tests. However, it has maintained a neutral stance regarding sanctions.

Korean War
History

• The Korean peninsula was ruled by the Joseon Dynasty from 1392 to 1897.
• By signing the treaty of Shimonoseki, Japan formed the Korean Empire after defeating China in the Sino- Japanese war of 1895.
• Korea was effectively under the rule of the Japanese during the World War II and after the fall of Japan, Korean War started.

Causes

• The present-day Korean conflict is born primarily from the seeds sown during Cold War – between USSR and USA.
• Korea was occupied by the United States and the Soviet Union at the end of World War II.
• The United States proposed temporarily dividing the country along the 38th Parallel as a way to maintain its influence on the peninsula, which bordered Russia.
• In 1948, the American-backed, anti-communist southern administration declared itself the Republic of Korea.
• Soon after, the Soviet-backed, communist northern administration, based in Pyongyang, declared itself the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Who were the combatants?

• The war pitted South Korea and the United States, fighting under the auspices of the United Nations, against North Korea and China.
• The Soviet Union supported North Korea at the beginning of the war, giving it arms, tanks and strategic advice.
• But China soon emerged as its most important ally, sending soldiers to fight in Korea as a way to keep the conflict away from its border.