launchers capable of firing short and medium range ballistic missiles. (8) Increasingly rigorous international economic sanctions applied since the passage of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 ( Public Law 114–122 ), including by the United States and the United Nations Security Council, have clearly intensified pressure on the regime and focused international attention on the urgency of the challenge posed by the Kim regime in Pyongyang. (9) The Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has flagrantly defied the international community by illicitly developing its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1718 (2006), 1874 (2009), 2087 (2013), 2094 (2013), 2270 (2016), 2321 (2016), 2371 (2017), 2375 (2017), and 2397 (2017). (10) The Government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea engages in gross human rights abuses against its own people and citizens of other countries, including the United States, the Republic of Korea, and Japan. (11) Kim Jong-un appears to have signaled an interest in undertaking diplomatic talks that could provide an opening for re-initiating negotiations regarding the regime’s nuclear program and peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. (12) The stakes for the security of the United States and United States allies are such that all credible diplomatic options must be prioritized, resourced, and fully pursued. (13) Economic pressure and sanctions provide critical leverage in any such diplomatic negotiations and must be maintained and strengthened until the North Korean regime takes meaningful and verifiable actions toward denuclearization. (14) The North Korean regime has a record of failing to live up to its diplomatic commitments, rejecting good faith efforts by United States and international negotiators, and leveraging talks to extract concessions such as sanctions relief. (15) The United States Government should continue a campaign of economic pressure and sanctions,