UN to vote on watered-down sanctions against North Korea

The UN Security Council is scheduled to vote on a watered-down sanctions resolution against North Korea that eliminates US demands to ban all oil imports to the country and freeze international assets of the government and its leader.

The draft resolution, agreed to late on Sunday after final negotiations between the US and China, North Korea's ally and main trading partner, also eliminates a US proposal to authorise the use of force to board and inspect nine named ships, which it said violated previous UN sanctions resolutions.