,h4 ,,res4 #ib ,in the ,house of ,representatives1 ,u4 ,s41 ,april #c1 #bjag ,,resolution ,whereas the ,democratic ,people's ,republic of ,korea 7,,dprk71 also known as ,north ,korea1 possesses a ballistic missile and nuclear weapons development program that poses a grave threat to the ,united ,states1 ,united ,states allies ,south ,korea and ,japan1 and to regional and global security2 ,whereas ,north ,korea's ballistic missile program has demonstrated an increasing ability to reach the ,united ,states1 which constitutes a credible and growing threat to the security of the ,american people2 ,whereas ,north ,korea has demonstrated a willingness and ability to proliferate its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons technology to a variety of countries1 including the ,islamic ,republic of ,iran and the ,syrian ,arab ,republic1 which the ,united ,states has designated as state sponsors of terrorism2 ,whereas1 on ,january #f1 #bjaf1 ,north ,korea detonated a nuclear device1 marking its fourth nuclear test to date2 ,whereas1 on ,february #g1 #bjaf1 ,north ,korea1 utilizing a modified version of the ,taepodong-#b ballistic missile1 launched a satellite into space2 ,whereas according to the ,u4,s4 ,intelligence ,community's #bjaf ,worldwide ,threat ,assessment1 ,north ,korea is committed to developing a long-range1 nuclear-armed missile that is capable of posing a direct threat to the ,united ,states2 it has publicly displayed its ,,kn#jh road-mobile ,,icbm on multiple occasions2 ,whereas1 on ,april #bh1 #bjaf1 ,deputy ,secretary of ,state ,antony ,blinken1 in a hearing before the ,foreign ,affairs ,committee of the ,house of ,representatives1 testified the benefits of the trilateral relationship are crystal clear in the face of the region's most acute challenge--the challenge from ,north ,korea and its provocative acts in the nuclear missile domain2 ,whereas1 on ,august #bd1 #bjaf1 ,north ,korea successfully tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile1 firing the missile over #cjj miles from a submerged submarine2 ,whereas1 on ,september #i1 #bjaf1 ,north ,korea conducted its fifth nuclear test1 which it claimed was a warhead that could be miniaturized for its ballistic missiles2 ,whereas1 on ,september #ae1 #bjaf1 ,admiral ,harry ,harris1 ,commander of ,u4,s4 ,pacific ,command1 stated ,combining nuclear warheads with ballistic missile technology in the hands of a volatile leader like ,kim ,jong-un1 is a recipe for disaster42 ,whereas1 on ,september #af1 #bjaf1 ,secretary of ,defense ,ashton ,carter stated ,everyone can see that ,north ,korea is determined to try to expand its missile threat to the peninsula1 to the region1 and to the ,united ,states42 ,whereas in #bjaf ,north ,korea willfully and repeatedly violated multiple ,united ,nations ,security ,council resolutions1 through its nuclear tests1 missile tests1 and satellite launch2 ,whereas1 on ,january #f1 #bjag1 ,deputy ,secretary of ,state ,antony ,blinken stated that ,north ,korea had conducted #bd missile tests in the past year1 as well as two nuclear tests and in our assessment1 we have a qualitative improvement in their capabilities in the past year as a result of this unprecedented level of activity2 ,whereas1 on ,january #h1 #bjag1 ,north ,korea declared that it is ready to test-launch an intercontinental ballistic missile 7,,icbm72 ,whereas1 on ,february #aa1 #bjag1 ,north ,korea launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile off its eastern coast while ,president ,donald ,trump hosted ,japanese ,prime ,minister ,shinzo ,abe on an official visit to the ,united ,states2 ,whereas1 on ,february #ah1 #bjag1 the ,people's ,republic of ,china announced that it would suspend all coal imports from ,north ,korea1 a significant source of revenue to the ,north ,korean regime2 ,whereas1 on ,february #bg1 #bjag1 the ,united ,nations ,panel of ,experts on ,north ,korea determined that ,the ,democratic ,people's ,republic of ,korea is flouting sanctions through trade in prohibited goods1 with evasion techniques that are increasing in scale1 scope and sophistication42 ,whereas1 on ,march #f1 #bjag1 ,north ,korea launched four intermediate range missiles1 three of which landed approximately #bjj miles off the coast of ,japan2 ,whereas ,south ,korea and the ,united ,states have made an alliance decision to deploy the ,terminal ,high ,altitude ,area ,defense 7,,thaad7 system as a self-defensive measure to ensure the security of ,south ,korea and its people1 and to protect alliance military forces from the growing threat of ,north ,korea's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program2 and ,whereas a nuclear ,north ,korea with a functional and operational intercontinental ballistic missile program would pose a direct threat to the ,united ,states and ,united ,states interests3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,house of ,representatives-- 7#a7 condemns ,north ,korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles 7,i,c,b,ms72 7#b7 welcomes the deployment of the ,terminal ,high ,altitude ,area ,defense 7,,thaad7 system in ,south ,korea to counter ,north ,korea's missile threat1 which supports an alliance security decision2 7#c7 urges the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china to immediately cease its diplomatic intimidation and economic coercion against ,south ,korea in an attempt to block the ,,thaad deployment2 7#d7 reaffirms the ,united ,states support for a layered1 integrated1 multi-tier missile defense system to protect ,americans and allies in ,northeast ,asia2 7#e7 supports continued bilateral security cooperation between the ,united ,states and ,south ,korea and the consideration of additional measures to strengthen the alliance1 including expanded foreign military sales1 joint exercises1 and other actions as appropriate2 7#f7 reaffirms1 in view of the ,,icbm threat by ,north ,korea1 the commitment of the ,united ,states to its alliances and to trilateral cooperation with ,south ,korea and ,japan1 which is critical for the preservation of peace and stability in ,northeast ,asia and throughout the world2 7#g7 supports and urges the full implementation of the intelligence sharing agreement between ,japan and ,south ,korea signed on ,november #bc1 #bjaf1 concerning the direct exchange of intelligence on ,north ,korean threats2 7#h7 calls upon the ,people's ,republic of ,china to use its considerable leverage to pressure ,north ,korean leaders to cease their provocative behavior and abandon and dismantle their nuclear and missile programs1 and comply with all relevant ,united ,nations ,security ,council resolutions2 7#i7 calls on the ,united ,states to fully enforce all existing economic sanctions on ,north ,korea and to seek to continuously adapt the sanctions regime to address evasive techniques employed by the ,north ,korean regime2 and 7#aj7 calls on the ,secretary of ,state to undertake a comprehensive and rigorous diplomatic effort to urge allies and other countries to fully enforce1 and build upon1 existing international sanctions on ,north ,korea4 ,clerk4