The government has decided to submit to the Diet a bill that would enable the Japan Coast Guard to inspect North Korean cargo on the high seas in line with a U.N. Security Council resolution, government sources said Monday.
"If there are any legal flaws in putting (the U.N. resolution) into practice, we need to take action so as to deal with it properly," Prime Minister Taro Aso said in reference to the resolution adopted Friday in response to Pyongyang's May 25 nuclear test.
The resolution urges member states to inspect all cargo to and from the North in their territories, including seaports and airports, if they have "information that provides reasonable grounds" to believe the cargo contains nuclear and missile-related items.