Japan has reportedly extended its trade embargo and other unilateral sanctions against North Korea for two years as they are set to expire April 13th.

Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun daily reported on Tuesday that the sanctions include a ban on the entry into Japanese ports of North Korean-registered ships, even for humanitarian purposes.

The entry ban has been imposed since 2006 following the North’s first nuclear test, while the trade embargo has been applied since 2009 in the wake of the North’s second nuclear test and a missile launch.

The Japanese government reportedly decided to maintain the trade embargo and sanctions in light of continued provocation by the North such as its ballistic missile launches.

In December last year, Japan imposed new unilateral sanctions on the North, freezing the assets of eleven groups and 18 individuals connected to the North’s nuclear and missile programs. 

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