US Congress puts North Korea back on terror blacklist

Washington : The US House of Representatives has approved a request by the State Department to put North Korea back on the list of countries sponsoring terrorism, from which the it was removed in 2008.

The lower house adopted the resolution late Monday with 394 votes in favour and only one against, weeks after Pyongyang tested a rocket engine and following multiple missile and nuclear tests, Efe news reported.

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North Korea was delisted as a state sponsor of terrorism in 2008 in an attempt by former US President George W. Bush to negotiate its disarmament.

In the past, Cuba, Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan have featured in the list drawn up by the state department, and which now includes countries such as Sudan, Syria and Iran.

The House of Representatives also approved 398-3, a resolution condemning North Korea's efforts to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles.

House Speaker Paul Ryan said the two resolutions are "concrete actions" to hold North Korea accountable for its actions and called former US President Barack Obama's policies towards Pyongyang a failure.