Politics
08:29, 07-Mar-2018
US finds evicdence DPRK killed Kim Jong Un's brother with VX agent
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The United States formally concluded Tuesday that Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) ordered the murder of a half-brother and potential rival to ruler Kim Jong Un with the banned VX nerve agent.
VX, short for "venomous agent X", has been banned by the United Nations.
"This public display of contempt for universal norms against chemical weapons use further demonstrates the reckless nature of DPRK and underscores that we cannot afford to tolerate a DPRK WMD programme of any kind," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.
The finding triggered another layer of US economic sanctions against Pyongyang, just as the Republic of Korea (ROK) reported that the regime is ready for talks to end the nuclear standoff.
Under US law, when a country or leader violates its ban on chemical and biological weapons, an import ban is imposed on its products, but the DPRK is already under severe US and UN sanctions, and Tuesday's decision will have little impact.
But reviving the controversy over last year's assassination of Kim Jong Nam, who was sprayed in the face by a chemical agent by two women as he traveled through Kuala Lumpur airport in Malaysia, could disrupt attempts to start talks.
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Source(s): AFP