China on Friday said that it has always been opposed to any country's unilateral sanctions against other nations, which are over and above those specified in UN Security Council restrictive measures.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks when commenting on reports saying that the Republic of Korea and Japan announced Friday plans to increase sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in response to DPRK's nuclear test in September.
Geng added that China has been even more strongly opposed to unilateral sanctions that could harm China's fair and lawful interests.
He said that the current situation in the Korean Peninsula is complicated and sensitive, so all relevant parties should work together to prevent activities which could irritate and aggravate tensions.
"[China] hopes relevant parties act prudently," Geng said.
The UN Security Council on Wednesday unanimously adopted a resolution to tighten sanctions on the DPRK in response to the country's fifth and largest nuclear test on September 9.
The council set an upper limit on the DPRK's coal exports, saying the total exports from the DPRK must not exceed 400.9 million U.S. dollars, or 7.5 million metric tons per year, whichever is lower, starting on Jan. 1, 2017.
In addition, the Security Council banned the sale of copper, nickel, silver, zinc and statues from the DPRK.
