The United Nations Security Council has voted unanimously to approve tough new sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. This comes after the DPRK launched a third nuclear test in Feburary.

Thursday’s vote by the U.N. Security Council, sends a powerful message that the international community condemns the ballistic missile and nuclear tests conducted by the DPRK - and the country’s repeated violation of UN resolutions.

The new sanctions make it more difficult for Pyongyang to finance and obtain material for these programs, tracking illegal diplomatic activity and intensifying inspections of cargo to and from the country.

The U.N. resolution identifies three individuals, one corporation and one organization that will be added to the sanctions list. The targets include top officials at a company that is the country’s primary arms dealer and main exporter of ballistic missile-related equipment as well as a national organization responsible for research and development of missiles and likely nuclear weapons.

Tensions have escalated following the rocket launch by Pyongyang in last December and its third nuclear test on Feb. 12.

The acts defied three UN Security Council resolutions that bar the DPRK from testing or using nuclear or ballistic missile technology, and from importing or exporting material for these programs.

The US and other nations worry that this third nuclear test has pushed the country closer to its goal of attaining nuclear warhead-capable missiles that can reach the U.S.