US President George W. Bush said the unanimous Security Council resolution sent "a clear message" to its reclusive leader Kim Jong-Il, a statement echoed in London, Paris, Tokyo and Seoul.
But signs of the intense diplomatic haggling over the scale and nature of the sanctions were evident even after the text was approved in New York, with China -- Pyongyang's closest ally -- voicing "reservations" about provisions for inspecting cargo going in and out of North Korea.
In contrast, Japan, which had pushed for even tougher measures, said it was considering further action of its own to ratchet up the pressure on Pyongyang.
In Washington, Bush said the world was united against Kim's atomic programme after its shock October 9 announcement that it had tested a nuclear weapon.
"This action by the United Nations, which was swift and tough, says that we are united in our determination to see to it that the Korean peninsula is nuclear weapons-free," the US president said.
North Korea's UN ambassador Pak Gil Yon condemned the resolution and said the Security Council had ignored the nuclear threat posed by Washington.
"It is gangster-like for the Security Council to have adopted today a coercive resolution while neglecting the nuclear threat and moves for sanctions and pressure of the United States," he said before storming out.
The UN text demands elimination of all North Korean programmes related to weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles, a ban targeting missiles, tanks, large artillery systems, warships and combat aircraft, and provides for the inspection of cargo to and from the state.
It further allows a travel ban on officials working on such programmes and the freezing of funds and economic assets linked to them, as well as slapping an embargo on luxury goods. But it specifically does not include any reference to military action.
China's UN ambassador, Wang Guangya, voiced "reservations" about provisions for cargo inspections, saying Beijing did not approve.
But Japan hailed the UN decision as a "great step forward". Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tokyo was considering further measures after slapping a sweeping ban on North Korean imports before the UN vote.
"With the resolution, the international community has been able to send a strong message that we do not tolerate possession of nuclear weapons," he told reporters.
Asked what further specific measures Japan had in mind, he replied: "We are already considering them. We will make our final decision."
South Korea urged the North to recognise the international community's "firm stance", abandon its weapons programme and return to six-party talks.
The foreign ministry said Seoul, one of the communist state's main economic benefactors, "welcomes and supports" the UN resolution and would "sincerely implement" it.
Britain said the six-nation talks, which Pyongyang has boycotted since last November, were "the only viable means" of creating lasting peace and stability on the Korean peninsula.
France, like Britain a nuclear power, said the united global response was essential because the world faced "other proliferation crises," a likely reference to the long-standing stand-off over Iran's nuclear programme.
Australia -- one of the few nations with diplomatic ties to North Korea -- welcomed the sanctions as "surprisingly tough."
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Canberra was considering a ban of its own on all visits by North Korean ships and whether naval ships should take part in the cargo inspections.
"I think they are surprisingly tough, it's a very robust Security Council resolution," he said.
A number of Asian nations welcomed the UN sanctions and called for North Korea to return to talks.
"Thailand supports the UN resolution. We wish to see real and constructive action from North Korea to reach a peaceful solution to the crisis," said Thai foreign ministry spokesman Kitti Wasinond.
Singapore called on the Stalinist state to abandon its nuclear weapons programme and return to six-party talks without preconditions, saying it would be in North Korea's "own best interests" to do so.
Cambodia, one of the few nations with diplomatic ties to North Korea, said it supported the sanctions and described them as an "an appropriate step".
But Cambodian government spokesman Khieu Kanharith added "we hope that the sanctions will not seriously affect the people of North Korea."

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2006