"Iran Collaborates with Bukhan on Long-Range Missile Development"

US Official: "Including Transfer of Key Missile Components"
No Specific Evidence Presented

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Baek Jong-min] A senior U.S. official has stated that North Korea and Iran have resumed cooperation on a long-range missile project. As the U.S. intensifies pressure on Iran, attention is focused on whether mentioning North Korea will become a new point of conflict in North Korea-U.S. relations.

On the 20th (local time), a major foreign news outlet, citing a senior U.S. official, reported that Iran is expected to have enough nuclear material to manufacture nuclear weapons by the end of the year, and that missile project cooperation with North Korea is also underway.

The official did not provide concrete evidence regarding the missile project cooperation between Iran and North Korea. However, the official mentioned that the cooperation between North Korea and Iran includes the transfer of critical components.

North Korea and Iran, both representative anti-American countries with close ties, have long been suspected of cooperating in ballistic missile and nuclear technology fields. There have been allegations that Iran purchased missiles from North Korea in the 1980s and 1990s, and in the early 2010s, it was suggested that Iran may have observed North Korea’s nuclear tests and long-range missile launches.

The U.S. Congressional Research Service (CRS), in its report titled "Iran’s Foreign and Defense Policies" published in March last year, stated that the military sectors of North Korea and Iran are suspected of continuing cooperation in nuclear and missile development, but that the scope of cooperation between the two countries cannot be determined based solely on publicly available information.

If the official’s claim is accurate, North Korea could be embroiled in controversy for violating relevant regulations, including United Nations Security Council sanctions resolutions against North Korea.

Currently, any form of technical cooperation related to North Korea’s ballistic missile launches is prohibited, and the U.S. has its own laws imposing sanctions on transactions involving equipment or technology listed in multilateral export control lists with countries such as North Korea and Iran.

Separately, the U.S. is reported to announce an executive order on the 21st imposing independent sanctions on more than 20 individuals and entities involved in Iran’s nuclear, missile, and conventional weapons programs.

While the sanctions target those involved in buying and selling conventional weapons with Iran, the possibility that North Korean individuals or organizations are included in these sanctions cannot be ruled out.

Separately, after the U.S. submitted a resolution to the UN Security Council last month to indefinitely extend the arms embargo on Iran but it was rejected, on the 19th the U.S. declared a full restoration of UN sanctions against Iran. However, permanent members of the UN Security Council such as Russia and China have shown strong opposition.

Meanwhile, at the upcoming UN General Assembly keynote speeches on the 22nd, U.S. President Donald Trump, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping are all scheduled to deliver virtual speeches simultaneously, raising the possibility of extreme confrontation over the Iran and North Korea issues.