The United States announced on Wednesday its intention to seek United Nations sanctions against ships suspected of violating U.N. resolutions designed to deter North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs. A report released by the British-based Open Source Center highlighted that numerous non-Korean flagged vessels have been transporting North Korean coal and iron ore to Chinese ports over the past year, contravening existing sanctions. During a U.N. Security Council meeting, James Byrne, director of the Open Source Network, identified several implicated vessels. These included the Tanzanian-flagged Armani and Sophia, the falsely flagged Cartier and Casio, along with the unflagged Yi Li 1 and An Yu.
Byrne pointed out that these ships have begun employing advanced “spoofing” techniques, misleading authorities by showing digital tracking data suggesting they were in different countries while satellite images indicated their operations in North Korean ports. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., Dorothy Camille Shea, emphasized the Security Council’s commitment to addressing sanctions violations, despite the challenges posed by Russia’s veto last year of a monitoring panel’s mandate. She indicated plans to nominate specific vessels for designation by the Security Council’s 1718 Committee in the coming days, based on Byrne’s briefing.
Ambassador Shea criticized Russia for obstructing sanctions enforcement, claiming Moscow has resorted to importing North Korean missiles for its conflict in Ukraine. She also accused China of neglecting its responsibilities, asserting that Chinese companies continue to import North Korean resources while insisting on compliance with U.N. resolutions. In response, Geng Shuang, China’s deputy U.N. ambassador, rejected U.S. allegations and claimed Washington was using the North Korea issue as a pretext for military actions that threaten regional security. Russian U.N.
Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya dismissed criticism of Moscow’s relations with North Korea, affirming it is a sovereign right. North Korea’s U.N. Representative, Kim Song, condemned the U.S. approach as “high-handed” and “arbitrary,” urging the international community not to tolerate such behavior.