North Korea's illegally imported refined petroleum products “about 9 times more likely than the upper limit”

A panel of UN Security Council experts said that the amount of refined petroleum products illegally imported by North Korea between January and September last year was about nine times the annual import limit set by the UN Security Council sanctions resolution. We have compiled a report that points out that there is a possibility of climbing.

NHK has obtained the latest report to be released next month by a panel of UN Security Council experts examining the implementation of sanctions on North Korea.

In the report, as information from the countries concerned, North Korea used the "Ship-to-ship" method of transferring cargo at sea at least 121 times between January and September last year, and oil such as gasoline and kerosene. It is said that it was confirmed that the refined product was illegally imported.

Assuming that 90% of the tanker's maximum load capacity is used, the total import volume is 4.4 million barrels, which is about nine times the annual import limit set by the sanctions resolution.

In addition, he is urging the governments of each country to thoroughly manage their own vessels, alleging that North Korea has been suspected of repeatedly using the identification number of a Panama-registered tanker that has already been scrapped.

Japan and the United States are conducting surveillance activities from the sea and the air, saying that there is a risk of using refined petroleum products illegally imported by North Korea in the military field.

However, China and Russia, which are permanent members of the Security Council and have close ties with North Korea, have insisted that there is insufficient evidence of ship-to-ship, and the international community has not been able to keep pace and the sanctions violations have not been stopped. I will.

Pointed out that Chinese companies may be involved in North Korea's violation of sanctions

The report, produced by a panel of experts from the United Nations Security Council, points out that companies in neighboring countries and China may be involved in various areas in violation of North Korean sanctions.

The sanctions resolution prohibits joint ventures with North Korean companies, but it is suspected that companies in eastern China and Zhejiang Province are joint ventures with North Korean trading companies to raise chickens and collect gravel. ..

In addition, the sanctions resolution called for the repatriation of North Korean workers working overseas by December, but ▽ northeastern China received an order from the British government last year for protective clothing for medical workers. A spinning company in Dandong, Liaoning Province, reportedly hired North Korean workers to work in violation of the resolution.

The panel of experts has asked these companies about the facts, but has not received any answers at this time.

The report further ▽ suspicion that an executive of the Korean Federation of Koreans in China in the Nobube Korean Autonomous Region of Jilin Province in northeastern China transferred fishing rights in North Korea to the Chinese side, ▽ eastern China, Shandong Province He also points out the suspicion that the ship fuel company in Shandong City was planning a joint venture with a North Korean company in the fishing sector.