The Russian freighter ‘Sevastopol’, is stranded in the South Korean port of Busan for over a month. The ships has been blacklisted by the US, as its owner has allegedly violated the sanctions. According to reports, local oil companies are reluctant to supply the ship with fuel.
The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned two Russian shipping companies and six vessels that were involved in ship-to-ship transfers of refined petroleum products with North Korea-flagged vessels, something that is prohibited by the UN Security Council.
The US accused North Korea of breaching the UN sanctions on refined petroleum, as illegal transfers between ships at sea took place. As a result, the US demanded an immediate stop to all sales of the fuel. The US said that these transfers, are breaching the UN sanctions.
North and South Korea have reinstated a maritime communication channel on Sunday July 1, as vessels from the two countries made radio contact for the first time since ten years, South Korea’s Defence Ministry informed. A North Korean patrol boat responded when the South Korean Navy contacted it via an international radio channel,
MPA Singapore issued an advisory, informing of temporary restrictions for mariners operating in the vicinity of Sisters Fairway, Western Anchorage, Buran Channel, Selat Sengkir, Keppel Harbour and Cruise Bay, during the summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, on 10-13 June 2018.
The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs suspected a North Korean-flagged tanker that was lying alongside a small vessel of unknown nationality, in the East China Sea, to have been conducting illegal ship-to-ship transfers of goods, on May 19. Japan notified the Security Council Committee of this incident.
In late March, the UN Security Council Committee updated its 1718 Sanctions List, adding 22 entries, comprising 21 entities and one individual. UNSC Resolution 1718, adopted in October 2006, imposes a series of economic and commercial sanctions on North Korea, on the aftermath of the country’s nuclear test.
The United Nations Security Council added 27 ships and 21 shipping companies to its blacklist over oil and coal smuggling by North Korea. The UN Security Council proceeded to blacklist these entities upon a request by the US. Namely, the United Nations Security Council added 21 shipping companies, 15 North Korean ships, 12 non-North Korean ships and a Taiwanese man, on its blacklist.
Insurers, flag registries, shipping companies, financial institutions, and others involved in shipping-related transactions may be subject to one or more sanctions prohibitions related to North Korea. The information herebelow is based on a recent advisory on N. Korea Sanctions, issued by the US Department of Treasure.
US provides examples of the types of tactics used by North Korea to obfuscate the identity of the vessels, the goods being shipped, and the origin or destination of cargo and also suggests measures to mitigate the risk of engaging in prohibited activity or processing prohibited transactions.
