Russia blocks renewal of UN panel monitoring N Korea sanction compliance
Al Jazeera
Sanctions, in force since 2006, will remain in place, but mandate of panel will come to an end on April 30.
Russia has vetoed the United Nations’ renewal of a panel of UN experts monitoring North Korea’s compliance with international sanctions.
The Russian move follows accusations from the United States, South Korea and others that Pyongyang is supplying Moscow with weapons to use in its war in Ukraine.
The panel, which monitors compliance with UN sanctions imposed over North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes nearly 20 years ago, said in its most recent update this month that it was investigating reports of the arms transfers.
“This is almost comparable to destroying a CCTV to avoid being caught red-handed,” South Korea’s UN ambassador, Joonkook Hwang, said of Russia’s veto.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, writing on social media after the veto, described the move as “a guilty plea”.
