ROK unveils unilateral sanctions on DPRK

The standalone sanctions included a ban on third-country ships having stayed at the DPRK within 180 days from entering the ROK's ports, according to the office for government policy coordination which served as a control tower for the unilateral measures jointly drawn up by foreign, unification and maritime ministries.

The entry ban will be also applied to foreign-flag ships actually owned by the DPRK.

Seoul added 30 entities and 40 individuals of the DPRK to the blacklist suspected of having been involved in Pyongyang's weapons of mass destruction development. The list included six entities and two individuals of third countries that support the DPRK's weapons program.

The blacklisted entities and individuals will be subject to restrictions on foreign exchange and financial transactions with the ROK's counterparts and the freezing of their assets in the ROK.

Included in the list was Kim Yong-chol, who the ROK sees as having masterminded the sinking of a ROK's battleship and the shelling of a border island of the ROK in 2010. Kim now serves as secretary of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea in charge of inter-Korean affairs, according to Seoul's estimate.

Restrictions on indirect exports and imports of DPRK products into the ROK will be strengthened, and South Koreans will be advised to refrain from visiting DPRK-run restaurants in overseas to block Pyongyang's foreign currency resources used for nuclear and missile development.