Gardner’s bill would tighten screws on North Korea

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) introduced the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2015 (NKSPEA) on Tuesday, legislation intent on forcing the Obama administration to take a tougher stance against Kim Jong Un’s regime. 

The legislation, also sponsored by Sens. Jim Risch (R-ID) and Marco Rubio (R-FL), would establish broad new sanctions against any parties involved in North Korea’s nuclear program and proliferation activities, as well as any officials involved in censoring the controversial regime’s continued human rights abuses.

“While much attention has rightfully been paid to developments in the Middle East, we must not forget the severe risk posed by the nuclear-armed and increasingly belligerent regime in North Korea,” Gardner said. “The regime is a menace to the region and to its own people, with a disturbing record of human rights violations. We need a stronger, more focused policy on North Korea, and if the administration is unwilling to provide it, Congress must act.”

In addition to the heavy sanctions, NKSPEA contains several modifications to current U.S. policy and strategy as it relates to North Korea, including stating that it is the policy of the United States to vigorously pursue sanctions against the North Korean government in order to peacefully disarm the North Korean regime. It would also require the president to set a strategy that would oppose any North Korean cyber-related attacks and impose U.S. sanctions on cybercriminals.

“The new sanctions within this legislation would apply the pressure required to change North Korea’s behavior, and would mandate that the United States finally have a unified strategy for dealing with North Korean cyber attacks,” Gardner concluded. “We can’t go any longer without a serious plan to deal with this threat. It’s time to get serious.”

Gardner is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy.