Japan approves list of luxury goods embargoed to N. Korea

North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il will have to find new favorite dishes, as the Japanese government on Tuesday decided to prohibit the transfer of Japanese tuna and beef to his nation.

The Japanese cabinet also decided to prohibit the transfer of luxury goods, such as cars, jewelry, liquor, watches and cigarettes, to the communist state.

The move follows a United Nations Security Council resolution aimed at reprimanding Kim and other ruling elite for their country's nuclear weapons test early last month.

Japan's Kyodo News agency reported that Tokyo listed 24 banned items whose total volume accounted for about 16 percent of exports to the North in previous years.

"I believe it is important to accurately convey to North Korea a united message from the international community by compiling the list in so short a time," Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Aso said in a news conference in Tokyo.

Despite Japan's swift reaction, most of the U.N.'s 192 member nations did not compile a list of luxury goods to be prohibited from export to North Korea.

The Security Council resolution called on the member states to report to the council within 30 days of the adoption of the resolution on Oct. 14 what steps they have taken to implement provisions of the sanctions resolution.

Only a handful, including South Korea, Australia, Canada and Britain, have submitted reports to the Council's Sanctions Committee as of Monday (New York time) when the deadline expired.

U.N. officials speaking on condition of anonymity said the delayed submission of reports was mainly due to the insufficient time given for their preparation.

Still, they said, only about 80 nations were expected to submit reports considering the numbers in similar resolutions in the past.

South Korea submitted its report Monday, but the report did not include a list of banned items.

Seoul officials said most, if not all, sensitive and strategic items were already banned from transfer to the communist state, and their country would prohibit any other specific goods from being shipped to North Korea following such decisions by the U.N. Security Council or its sanctions committee.

Tokyo/New York, Nov. 14 (Yonhap News)