China decided to stop seafood imports – along with iron and iron ore – from North Korea on Monday, 14 August.
The Chinese government had pledged to fully enforce the recent United Nations sanctions against North Korea that include halting profitable seafood exports.
The sanctions could slash the country’s USD 3 billion (EUR 2.5 billion) in annual export revenue by a third, according to The Guardian.
The Chinese commerce ministry said on its website that all imports of coal, iron, iron ore and seafood will be "completely prohibited" starting on Tuesday, 15 August, PRI reported.
Pyongyang vowed that it would take “righteous action” in light of the sanctions, which were described by the capital as a crime for which the U.S. would pay for “thousands of times,” reported The Guardian.
In addition to the export sanctions, the new U.N. measures forbid China, Russia and other countries from hiring any more North Korean laborers.