North Korea - United States - United Nations: A mouse that nibbles at sanctions

The sanctions decided by the Security Council to force North Korea to put an end to its strategic programs are at their worst. Partly circumvented, thanks to the ships, tankers and cargo ships acquired by the DPRK in violation of the sanctions and with the help of China, more than double the authorized volume of oil has been imported. But at the same time, distorted by the extreme financial measures decided unilaterally by Washington to asphyxiate Pyongyang. North Korea is shaping up to be a new and severe subject of confrontation between the United States and China.

DWT: deadweight tonnage - refers to the loading capacity of a vessel
DPRK: Democratic People's Republic of Korea

FACTS

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On 7 March 2023, the annual report on the monitoring of sanctions imposed as a result of North Korea's continuing nuclear and missile programmes was released by the Security Council-appointed Panel of Experts. It is an extremely well-documented 490-page online document, written with the caveats that diplomats must retain, and this study has sought out the key insights1 .

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ISSUES

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Maintaining or revising sanctions that are currently being abused.
 
 

FORWARD-LOOKING COMMENTS

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Read carefully, the report provides an understanding of the issues at stake in the main sanctions imposed by the Security Council, namely:
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• activities related to the nuclear program and the ballistic missile program. The nuclear context is very worrying and is the subject of a special study in this issue;
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• maritime sanctions and their circumvention ;
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• financial penalties;
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• the "unintended" humanitarian effects of sanctions.

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Maritime sanctions and their circumvention

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In explicit violation of the Security Council's prohibitions, DPRK's ship acquisition operations* accelerated in 2022. Seven cargo ships totaling 33,000 DWT* , were listed, as well as a container ship of 3,285 DWT* and two tankers with a tonnage of 9,000 DWT* . These are in addition to the six tankers acquired earlier, totaling 36,700 DWT* .
 
The report gives an account of the movements and cargoes of these ships, monitored by satellite by a member state, i.e. the United States. Thus, the presence of trucks in the cargo hold of a Chinese cargo ship could be highlighted.

The results are there. By means of transshipments between tankers in the DPRK's exclusive economic zone* or directly by DPRK tankers* , one million barrels, double the authorized volumes, have been delivered. This volume is expected to be far exceeded in 2023.

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The vessels were acquired in violation of the sanctions using the same process. To disguise the operation, multiple intermediaries are used, including at least one Chinese. These are companies that have no online presence, and which conceal the actual ownership of the end user in order to hide any link with Pyongyang. The flags are cancelled and a flag of convenience is used for the delivery of the vessel.  Finally, it was found that the Tomi Haru, now the Hyang Sang, and the Toyo Haru, now the So Baeker SU, were two cargo vessels managed by the Hong Kong Yong Xiang Shipping Limited, whose Director is a Chinese national.
 
When questioned by the Group of Experts, China responded in a dilatory manner, affirming its strict compliance with international regulations, but stating that it was impossible to carry out any investigation due to the vagueness of the Group of Experts' requests, or the lack of guarantees regarding the confidentiality of the information it might provide.

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Financial penalties

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We must be clear. In addition to the sanctions decided by the Security Council, which only sanction the continuation of North Korea's strategic programs, the United States has decided to take much harsher measures unilaterally.

The first include the freezing of North Korean assets and the imposition of restrictions on the ability of North Korean banks to conduct transactions with foreign banks and, on another level, the prohibition of exports of coal, ore, fishery products, likely to bring foreign currency.

U.S. sanctions go as far as convicting companies for violating U.S. export controls. For example, British American Tobacco was fined $629 million for simple tobacco sales2 ! Moreover, since 2017, as part of the "maximum pressure" campaign sought by President Trump, with the exclusion from the U.S. financial system of any foreign company or person who facilitates trade with North Korea, it is an asphyxiation of North Korea that is sought.
 
To mitigate these sanctions we find China, a central player in maritime trade, but which has also acquired fishing rights in the exclusive economic zone of North Korea.
 

Humanitarian impacts

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While the sanctions set out in resolutions 1718 and 2397 were intended to have no negative humanitarian consequences for the civilian population, and not to interfere with or impede cooperation, food aid and humanitarian assistance, they do not.
 
Every year, the Panel must deplore this. "Although it is difficult to say with any precision, the Panel believes there is little doubt that UN sanctions have had an unintended impact on the humanitarian situation."  At the root of this situation are:
reduced livelihoods for those employed in sectors affected by sanctions,
increased social marginalization,
a constant shortage of agricultural equipment and fuel, further accentuating the low level of agricultural mechanization,
Increased disruptions in medical supply chains.
 
At issue is the broad interpretation of sanctions, particularly financial sanctions. The Panel stresses that a sustainable banking system must be urgently re-established so that humanitarian operations can resume without interruption. It is not alone.  

On December 9, 2022, during the discussion of the resolution on humanitarian exemptions to asset freeze measures imposed by sanctions regimes, the Chinese representative, supported by Russia, emphasized that the greatest legal and political risk for humanitarian agencies comes not from Council sanctions but rather from unilateral sanctions, some of which create great chaos and disaster.

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USA/CPD, a new subject of discord

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All of the above, the way China is positioning itself as a protector of North Korea by helping it circumvent sanctions, directly challenges the United States. Will this be a new subject of direct confrontation between Washington and Beijing?
 
Could we not see the beginnings of this on April 18, 2023, when the G7 foreign ministers declared that North Korea could not and would never achieve nuclear weapons status and urged it to "refrain" from any further nuclear test or ballistic missile launch or face a swift, united and robust international response? And at the same time, in a message to Kim Jong-un, Xi Jinping expressed his desire to take cooperation between the two countries to the next level.
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Edouard Valensi, Asie21
edouard.valensi@gmail.com

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(1) Final report submitted by the Group of Experts pursuant to resolution 2627 (2022)      
(2) British American Tobacco to Pay $629 Million in Fines for N. Korean Tobacco Sales

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