U.S. Tightens Sanctions On North Korea

In the wake of a recent nuclear test and rocket launch by North Korea, on February 18, 2016, President Obama signed into law the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (the "Act"), which enhances existing U.S. sanctions against North Korea and imposes secondary sanctions on non-U.S. persons that engage in certain types of activities relating to North Korea. The impact of the Act on U.S. companies, which already were prohibited from engaging in most business involving North Korea, will pale in comparison to the impact on non-U.S. companies that do business involving North Korea. This is particularly the case for companies in China, which is North Korea's most important trading partner, although China has reportedly agreed to a draft United Nations resolution imposing new sanctions against North Korea. While the Act is complex, provided below are discussions of certain of its key aspects.