Japan looks into more sanctions against NKorea

TOKYO, July 18: Japan has begun work on possible financial sanctions against North Korea over its missile tests, but said a decision on implementation would be taken in concert with other countries and depend on Pyongyang's behaviour.

Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki said government officials were looking into ways to impose restrictions on financial assets and fund flows to North Korea.

''The purpose is to get North Korea to abandon its development of ballistic missiles. We need to work in the international arena and I believe restrictions on the transferral of funds will be important and effective,'' Tanigaki told a news conference.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe, the top government spokesman, also said details of the measures would be decided in consultation with other nations, while Foreign Minister Taro Aso said action would depend on North Korea's future actions.

A law passed in 2004 allows Japan to limit fund remittances from pro-Pyongyang Korean residents of Japan, a key source of badly needed foreign currency for the North's struggling economy.

Japan has already imposed a number of measures against North Korea following its multiple missile firings on July 5, including a six-month ban on the entry of a passenger ferry, the only direct passenger link between the two countries.

The UN Security Council voted unanimously on Saturday for a resolution demanding North Korea halt its ballistic missile programme and requiring nations to prevent Pyongyang from acquiring dangerous weapons.

North Korea totally rejected the resolution, insisting the country would ''bolster its war deterrent'' in every way.

REUTERS