UNITED NATIONS—The United States and China have reached agreement on a U.N. resolution that would impose tougher sanctions on North Korea as punishment for its latest nuclear test and rocket launch, U.N. diplomats say. The council likely will discuss the draft Thursday afternoon.
One Security Council diplomat called the draft resolution “significantly substantive” and expressed hope that it will be adopted in the coming days. Another said the draft had been circulated on Wednesday to the three other permanent council members—Russia, Britain and France.
The council is scheduled to hold closed consultations Thursday on compliance with the North Korean sanctions resolutions, and the U.S.-China draft could be discussed then with the 10 non-permanent council members.
Both diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity because all discussions on the proposed resolution have been private.
Their comments follow a flurry of activity in Washington, including meetings between China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday, and with National Security Adviser Susan Rice on Wednesday afternoon.
