Obama will sign North Korea sanctions bill

US President Barack Obama has signed legislation slapping new sanctions on North Korea in response to a string of nuclear weapons and missiles tests.

FILE - In this Feb. 9, 2016 file photo, President Barack Obama speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. President Barack Obama has signed legislation imposing new sanctions against North Korea for refusing to stop its nuclear weapons program. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

US President Barack Obama has signed off on new sanctions against North Korea to punish the reclusive Asian nation for its provocative recent nuclear test and rocket launch.

The White House said Obama had signed measures passed by Congress, tightening sanctions on anyone importing goods or technology related to weapons of mass destruction into North Korea, or anyone who knowingly engaged in human rights violations.

The legislation also authorises $50 million over the next five years to transmit radio broadcasts into North Korea, purchase communications equipment and support humanitarian assistance programs.

North Korean leader ... Kim Jong-un believes nuclear weapons are essential to his country’s survival. Picture: AFP

Congress approved the bill last Friday. Until now, the White House had said that Obama wouldn’t oppose the bill, but hadn’t committed to signing it.

Republicans and Democrats overwhelmingly approved the bill by a vote of 408-2 less than a week after North Korea launched a rocket carrying a satellite into space.

Pyongyang also conducted its fourth underground nuclear test last month. Both actions sparked worldwide condemnation and heightened fears the reclusive Asian nation is moving steadily toward assembling an atomic arsenal.

The expanded sanctions from Congress come as the US and China are in delicate negotiations over a UN Security Council resolution on new sanctions. China has raised concerns about measures that could devastate North Korea’s economy.