Japan announces new sanctions on North Korea

The sanctions will include expanded restrictions on travel between the two countries and a complete ban on visits by North Korean ships to Japanese ports, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a news conference.

Experts say Japan's steps will have little impact except to demonstrate the country's determination, because Tokyo, which has no diplomatic ties with North Korea, has limited relations to begin with and the sensitivity of the abduction issue.

North Korea's missile development poses a serious threat to Japan's national security, but Japan has the abduction issue and it doesn't want to lose its communication with the North.

The launch, which came about a month after the country's fourth nuclear test, was quickly condemned by world leaders as a potential threat to regional and global security.