UN Expert Panel's Term Ends Amid Russian Opposition
UN's North Korea Sanctions Monitoring Body Abolished After 15 Years
Government "Deep Regret"... US Criticizes as "Reckless Action"
North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a meeting and shook hands at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Amur Oblast, Russia, on September 13 last year (local time). [Image source=Yonhap News]
The United Nations (UN) Security Council's expert panel monitoring the implementation of sanctions against North Korea is on the verge of disappearing after 15 years. This is because Russia, a permanent member of the Security Council, exercised its veto in the vote to extend the panel's mandate. Concerns are rising that gaps may emerge in the sanctions against North Korea.
UN Monitoring Body to Cease Activities Next Month Due to Russian Veto
On the 28th (local time), the UN Security Council held a meeting at its New York headquarters and voted on a resolution to extend the mandate of the expert panel under the North Korea Sanctions Committee. Among the 15 Security Council member states, 13?including South Korea, the United States, and Japan?voted in favor, China abstained, and Russia exercised its veto.
For the resolution to pass, it must receive the support of at least 9 of the 15 Security Council members, and none of the five permanent members? the United States, China, Russia, the United Kingdom, and France?may exercise a veto.
With the resolution failing, the mandate of the expert panel under the North Korea Sanctions Committee will expire on the 30th of next month. If an agreement is reached before then and a resolution is adopted again, the mandate could be extended, but analysts believe it is unlikely that Russia will change its position anytime soon.
The expert panel was established in 2009 following North Korea's second nuclear test and has extended its mandate annually through resolutions. If the panel is disbanded due to Russia's opposition this time, it will disappear into history after 15 years.
The expert panel has continuously monitored the implementation of sanctions against North Korea, uncovered violations, and published in-depth reports twice a year. Without this monitoring body, it will be difficult to ensure the effective enforcement of UN sanctions against North Korea.
Russia Strengthens Military Cooperation with North Korea... Undermining Sanctions
Russia, which has recently been strengthening military cooperation with North Korea, has taken a negative stance on the sanctions. In particular, this year, it is reported that Russia even proposed applying a sunset clause to the entire set of sanctions in the resolution related to the extension of the expert panel's mandate.
Currently, the sanctions against North Korea remain in effect unless a separate agreement is made, but Russia proposed that unless a new resolution is adopted annually to renew them, the entire sanctions regime would lose its effect. In this case, the sanctions would face an annual existential crisis amid the passive attitudes of Russia and China.
Russia's refusal to extend the expert panel's mandate is interpreted as a response to South Korea, the United States, and others rejecting such proposals. South Korea and the United States reportedly tried to persuade Russia before the vote, but Russia did not relent.
However, some argue that since the application of a sunset clause to the sanctions was a demand that South Korea, the United States, and Japan could not accept from the start, Russia's insistence on ending the expert panel's activities was an excessive move.
For Russia, which needs military cooperation with North Korea for the war in Ukraine, the activities of the expert panel monitoring sanctions against North Korea are inevitably burdensome.
John Kirby, White House National Security Council (NSC) National Security Communications Coordinator [Photo by Yonhap News]
Government Expresses "Deep Regret"... US Calls It a "Reckless Act"
The government issued a statement through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson expressing deep regret over Russia's use of its veto.
The government said, "We express deep regret that the resolution to extend the mandate of the expert panel under the Security Council's North Korea Sanctions Committee, which oversees the implementation of sanctions against North Korea, was rejected due to Russia's veto despite overwhelming support from the majority of Council members, including our country."
It added, "Our government clearly points out that at a time when the UN's monitoring function for sanctions against North Korea should be further strengthened, Russia, a permanent member of the Security Council, chose an irresponsible action that goes against the consensus of the Council members and severely undermines the UN sanctions regime and the international community's trust in the Security Council, which it has previously defended."
The government further stated, "Based on the will of the majority of Council members expressed in this vote, we will firmly maintain the existing Security Council sanctions regime against North Korea to ensure that North Korea ceases violations of Security Council resolutions and returns to the path of denuclearization, and will closely cooperate with the international community for strict implementation."
Hwang Joon-kook, South Korea's ambassador to the UN, also criticized the end of the expert panel's mandate, saying, "It is similar to destroying CCTV while a crime is being committed."
John Kirby, National Security Council (NSC) Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the White House, sharply criticized Russia during a briefing, saying, "Today's reckless act further weakens the very important sanctions imposed by the United States and the UN Security Council in response to North Korea's multiple nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
