More effective sanctions are more essential now because the North Korean government is allowing another major famine (like the one in the 1990s that killed 5-10 percent of the population) to develop. The North Korean rulers believe having nuclear weapons will enable them to extort sufficient fuel, food and cash to turn things around.
Is North Korea so close to nuclear missiles that they are squeezing every last resource out of their people to cross the finish line before the government collapses or enemies strike their nuclear facilities to put off that day?
If that plays out in another famine, I'm sure that global "humanitarian" groups will argue that the world should provide food aid to North Korea, which will reward the regime for choosing nukes over their people.
