The House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday that will allow Japan to unilaterally impose economic sanctions on North Korea, paving the way for its endorsement by the full Diet by the end of next week.

The amendment to the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Law cleared the chamber's plenary session with the support of the Liberal Democratic Party, its ruling bloc ally New Komeito, as well as two opposition parties -- the Democratic Party of Japan and the Social Democratic Party.

The Japanese Communist Party voted against the bill. The ruling parties plan to get the bill passed by the Upper House on Feb. 6.

"The revised legislation will provide (the government) with an additional diplomatic tool of imposing economic sanctions," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda told reporters.

The current foreign exchange law prevents Japan from halting cash remittances to North Korea without a multinational agreement or a United Nations resolution.

The revised law will allow Japan to do so on its own if the government deems it necessary to maintain peace and security.

On Wednesday, Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency harshly criticized the proposed legislation, calling it a "grave obstacle" toward a peaceful resolution of Pyongyang's nuclear threat.

But LDP lawmaker Ichita Yamamoto, who drafted the bill, said, "North Korea's reaction proves that the legislation could be played as a diplomatic card (on Pyongyang)."

The government has earlier been reluctant to take any measures that could anger the North, apparently fearing Pyongyang would stiffen its attitude at a time when Japan and other nations in the region are trying to persuade it to agree to hold a second round of six-nation talks -- involving the Koreas, Japan, China, Russia and the U.S. -- on resolving the nuclear crisis.

But Japan apparently shifted its stance after North Korea gradually showed signs of compromise on the nuclear standoff as well as the issue of Japanese nationals abducted to the North in the 1970s and 1980s.

"Having a diplomatic card like this would not necessary negatively affect the future course of the six-party talks," said Mitoji Yabunaka, a senior Foreign Ministry official in charge of North Korean relations.

Speaking at a joint gathering of LDP foreign policy-related panels, Yabunaka referred to another bill proposed by some party members that would ban any North Korean ships from entering Japanese ports.

The LDP began deliberations on the port entry ban legislation Thursday, hoping to submit it to the Diet by mid-March.

LDP lawmaker Kenichi Mizuno, one of the proponents of the second bill, told the party gathering that the two bills are necessary as a package for Japan to effectively level economic sanctions on the North.

"Of some 4 billion yen (in annual) cash remittances from Japan to North Korea, 3.5 billion yen is sent there by the ferry Mangyongbong-92, instead of through a financial institution," he said, referring to the North Korean ship that travels between Niigata and Wonsan on an irregular basis.

Unless there are measures to stop port calls by North Korean vessels, any attempts to halt the cash remittances will have loopholes, the lawmaker said.