South Korea, Japan unveil sanctions over alleged Russia-North Korea arms trade

Reuters:

SEOUL/TOKYO, May 24 – South Korea and Japan announced on Friday a series of sanctions applied to individuals, organisations and ships related to Russia’s alleged procurement of weapons from North Korea in breach of U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Seoul’s foreign ministry said sanctions had been slapped on seven North Korean individuals and two Russian vessels over weapons trade and other activities between Pyongyang and Moscow.

The Russian vessels had been carrying a large quantity of containers between Russia and North Korea transporting military supplies in a clear violation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions, the ministry said in a statement.

The United States and South Korea have accused North Korea of transferring weapons to Russia for use in its war in Ukraine. Moscow and Pyongyang have denied the accusations, but vowed last year to deepen military relations.

Japan also announced sanctions on 11 organisations and one individual including what it said were Russian groups involved in military cooperation to support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Russia’s procurement of arms from North Korea violates the relevant U.N. resolutions that completely prohibit the transfer of arms and related materials to and from North Korea,” Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a news conference.