Confronting North Korea 'Head-on'... Government Imposes Independent Sanctions on North Korean Ships for the First Time in 8 Years

Sanctions Imposed on 11 Ships, 2 Individuals, and 3 Organizations

North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un conducted on-site guidance at important munitions factories on the 8th and 9th, according to a report by the Korean Central News Agency on the 10th. A slogan board on the factory wall, reading "The enemies are lighting the fuse of war. We will sweep away the imperialist U.S. and South Korean things...", is blurred and pixelated.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The government has imposed independent sanctions on North Korean vessels for the first time in eight years. Amid North Korea's recent official designation of South Korea as an 'unchanging principal enemy' and its escalation of military threats, our government is also strengthening its 'strong against strong' response strategy.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 17th, the government designated 11 North Korean vessels, 2 individuals, and 3 organizations as targets of this year's first independent sanctions against North Korea. They are suspected of supporting North Korea's nuclear and missile development through involvement in maritime transshipment, smuggling refined oil into North Korea, and illicit exports.

This is the first time the government has imposed independent sanctions on vessels since March 2016, eight years ago. Since its inauguration, the Yoon Seok-yeol administration has independently sanctioned targets involved in arms and financial transactions, cyber and information communication, and the dispatch of laborers 15 times.

This measure is interpreted as a determination to tighten the sanction net in the maritime sector to encircle North Korea more closely. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, "It demonstrates our government's strong will to deter illegal nuclear and missile development by blocking North Korea's continuous illegal procurement of funds and materials via maritime routes."

All 11 vessels designated this time violated United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions through maritime transshipment with North Korean vessels, smuggling refined oil into North Korea, illicit coal exports, and importing used vessels to North Korea. Until now, North Korea has procured materials and funds for nuclear and missile development through various illegal activities at sea to evade UNSC sanctions.

Among the 11 vessels designated on the sanctions list, seven were recommended by the UN Security Council North Korea Sanctions Committee's Panel of Experts to be designated as UN sanctions targets. The Panel of Experts stated in its interim report published in September 2023 that North Korea is estimated to have imported 780,000 barrels of refined oil by April 2023, which is 1.5 times the annual quota.

Except for two vessels sanctioned by the European Union (EU) in December 2022, all were designated as independent sanction targets by our government for the first time worldwide. The individuals designated are Park Kyung-ran of Baeksul Trade and Min Myung-hak, General Manager of Ri Sang Trade. They were involved in smuggling used vessels and refined oil into North Korea, illegal maritime transshipment, and dispatching North Korean laborers.

The government is responding strongly and firmly to North Korea, which continues provocative acts this year. The Ministry of Unification stated the previous day, "We will respond strongly and decisively to North Korea's brazen attempts to distort inter-Korean relations and aggressively provoke military provocations," adding, "We will retaliate with a firm readiness and overwhelming capability in case of North Korean provocations."