Despite UN Security Council Resolution 1718 of 15 October 2006 establishing an embargo on certain sensitive materials which was adopted a few days after its first nuclear test, the Popular Democratic Republic of Korea (PDRK) seems determined to pursue its nuclear weapons policy. It is betting that the international situation is favourable and allows it the political opportunity to develop a nuclear deterrent. The implication is not only that the regime of Kim Jong Il will then have a ‘sanctuary’, but that the strategic balance of the region will in time be liable to nuclear blackmail from North Korea.