A/HRC/34/66 Council. In June 2016, the thirteenth Supreme People’s Assembly held its fourth session. The Assembly replaced the National Defence Commission, the highest military decisionmaking body, with a commission of State affairs. Mr. Kim was also elected as Chair of the new commission. These political events were held against the backdrop of two nuclear tests in one year (the country’s fourth nuclear test was conducted on 6 January and its fifth on 9 September 2016) and several launches of missiles of various ranges. 4. Mr. Kim reflected again on the policy of simultaneous development of the economy and of nuclear weapons in his 2017 New Year address. First, he emphasized the importance of concentrating national efforts on the implementation of the five-year strategy for economic development. He described the areas to be developed in some detail, making repeated references to the improvement of people’s livelihood and the importance of education, public health and culture. At the same time, he stressed that the country would “continue [to] build up [its] self-defence capability, the pivot of which is the nuclear forces, and the capability for pre-emptive strike”, stating that the country had “entered the final stage of preparation for the test launch of [an] intercontinental ballistic missile”.3 Increased tensions and isolation 5. The repeated nuclear tests and missile launches in 2016 contributed to further isolating the country from the international community. The tests violated Security Council resolutions and significantly raised tensions on the Korean peninsula and in the North-East Asian region more broadly. Following each nuclear test, the Council adopted a resolution to further tighten sanctions against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. 4 These sanctions expanded arms embargo and non-proliferation measures, including on some dualuse items. The sanctions also aimed to restrict the country’s capacity to earn foreign currency, including by imposing an annual cap on coal exports. In resolution 2321 (2016), the Council reduced the possibilities for the livelihood purpose exception, for example by adding further requirements for applying it to coal exports. Some States also adopted unilateral measures, increasingly restricting contact between people and exchange of goods between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and other countries. In February 2016, the Republic of Korea closed the Kaesong industrial complex, where citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea worked for companies from the Republic of Korea. The Special Rapporteur notes that the sanctions imposed by the Security Council are not intended to affect the livelihood of ordinary people, and the international community should monitor the potentially negative impact of the sanctions closely. Impact on human rights dialogue 6. Rising tensions and increased isolation hindered the advancement of the human rights dialogue between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and other countries. Reunion events to allow meetings between family members separated by the armistice line between the two Koreas have not been held since October 2015. In reaction to “autonomous measures”5 adopted by Japan after the January 2016 nuclear test and the February launch by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea using ballistic missile technology, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea announced that it would stop the investigations on all Japanese nationals and dissolved the special investigation committee established under the agreement concluded in Stockholm in 2014, in which the country had committed to 3 4 5 4 Permanent Mission of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to the United Nations, press release No.1/01/17, “Kim Jong Un’s New Year address”, 2 January 2017. Resolutions 2270 (2016) and 2321 (2016). See http://www.mofa.go.jp/a_o/na/kp/page3e_000628.html.