UNSC Moving Forward with Sanctions on North Korea

John Bolton continues to do great work at the UN by nearly getting the United Nations Security Council to approve sanctions against North Korea that actually has some teeth in them:

  Article 8 of the draft resolution says all UN member nations are to prevent all goods, equipment, products and technology related to North Korea’s nuclear development from going into the country, and that such materials are banned from direct or indirect transfer to the North via land and sea. It also covers luxury goods.

Member nations will be obliged to freeze financial assets owned and managed by individuals and organizations proven to have helped the North develop weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear arms and missiles. When it comes to the contentious issue of inspections of North Korean vessels, UN members are called on to take “cooperative action” as necessary under their own domestic law and in a way that does not violate international law.

Basically what I’m getting out of reading this resolution is that anything related to the NK nuclear program will be hit with sanctions including even luxury items for the regime.  So Kim Jong-il may have some less cognac in stock this winter.  The sanctions also hit North Korean leaders with a travel ban.  It will be interesting to see how the travel ban is implemented.  Does it mean Kim Jong-il can’t take train journeys to Russia and China anymore?  Or Kim’s son can’t take family holidays at Tokyo Disneyland as well?

The big item in the sanctions is the cargo inspections of North Korean ships.  The way I interpret the sanctions is that the US and it’s allies can conduct cargo inspections.  If cargo inspections of North Korean ships is implemented expect some kind of incident to happen, because these inspections would shut down the North Koreans drug trade activities.  To move their drugs the North Koreans would have to ship them over land through China which could be potentially embarrassing for the Chinese.  Plus if the US does implement  the sanctions they should be very careful about having the Japanese help with the inspections because a fire fight for example between the North Koreans and the Japanese may bring up old imperial Japan sentiments in South Korea and China no matter how outrageous they may seem.

The US media is playing it that the sanctions are weak because it does not hit North Korea with full sanctions on all their economic activities.  My response to that is what other economic activity does North Korea have?  Drug running and counterfeiting?   Now the big question for South Korea will be the Kaesong and Kumgangsan economic projects with North Korea:

The draft resolution is still ambiguous in determining the kinds of transactions UN members are prohibited from conducting with North Korea. When it is put into action, however, such inter-Korean business projects as the Kaesong Industrial Complex and package tours to Mt. Kumgang, which are cash cows for the North, will come under the scrutiny of a committee to be established in the UN to monitor whether member countries are adhering to their obligations. The UN will put more pressure on Seoul to inspect North Korean vessels in the East and West Sea.

The US would have to prove that these projects provide money for the North Korean weapons programs.  Though it is obvious that they are, it would be difficult to prove.  Expect these programs to continue under the Roh Administration but once a new South Korean president is elected next year expect them to end.

The final vote and approval of these sanction should happen in the next 24 hours.

More sanctions coverage at One Free Korea (particularly good) and the Marmot.