CHINA and Russia have blocked tougher US-led sanctions on North Korea which would have placed further restrictions on the amount of oil Pyongyang could legally import. 

The pair vetoed the proposal put forward at the UN security council on Thursday to punish North Korea over its renewed ballistic missile launches. 

The US “should not place one-sided emphasis on the implementation of sanctions alone. It should also work to promote a political solution,” China’s ambassador to the UN Zhang Jun said.