President Expected To Sign Sen. Gardner's Bill To Hit North Korea With Stronger Sanctions
DENVER (CBS4) - The United States is poised to hit North Korea with stronger sanctions for refusing to stop its nuclear weapons program. The White House now says President Obama will sign the bill, and it was co-authored by Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner.
The legislation comes in the wake of North Korea's launch of a long range rocket carrying a satellite and a month after its fourth nuclear weapons test.
Gardner says the U.S. policy of "strategic patience" is clearly failing.
"As a result of the strategic patience policy we now have North Korea testing four times an atomic weapon, they've violated numerous United Nations sanctions, U.S. sanctions by launching ballistic missile tests," Gardner said.
Gardner's bill would -- for the first time -- mandate an investigation and sanctions, not only against North Korea, but any country that helps facilitate its nuclear and ballistic missile development, enable its human rights abuses, or engage in cybersecurity attacks like the Sony Pictures hack last year.
The legislation has unnerved China which controls 90 percent of North Korea's economy.
"If China is doing business with a company that ends up putting money back into proliferation activities, then we'll sanction that company and China," Gardner said. "It's an important step, it's the first time we've ever done this and I think it really will be the model that we can take these cyber-sanctions and put it on Russia and Iran if they turn around and create some attack against us."
The Obama administration had promised talks with South Korea on a new missile defense system but Gardner says it's not enough.
"Right now what we see is the president will pick and choose where he wants to place sanctions, discretionary, and it's not doing the job," Gardner said.
Gardner's bill passed the House and Senate with only two lawmakers opposing it.