House chairman urges sanctions on North Korea

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Congress should approve economic sanctions against North Korea in retaliation for the cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce said Friday.

{mosads}The California Republican said the new GOP Congress should act quickly in January to revive a North Korea sanctions bill that passed the House in July.

“The administration’s failure to impose the type of tough financial sanctions that hit the Kim regime hard in 2005, before they were unwisely ended, is more indefensible by the day,” Royce said in a statement.

“The regime must feel the great economic pressure these sanctions brought, and could bring again.”

Royce’s statement came after the FBI officially blamed North Korea for the cyberattack that led Sony to cancel the release of the controversial Seth Rogen comedy “The Interview,” which depicts the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The House chairman said canceling the film’s release amounted to a capitulation to North Korea.

“The decision to pull ‘The Interview’ from theaters unfortunately is a North Korean victory in its attack on our freedom,” Royce said. “We better quickly respond comprehensively to defend freedom of speech in the face of terrorist threats and cyber attacks.”