This was pretty stupid that this ship would sail into a South Korean port after illegally delivering oil to North Korea:
This composite photo of oil transfer between China and North Korea is captured from the website of the U.S. Department of the Treasury. (Yonhap)
A Hong Kong-flagged vessel has been seized and inspected by South Korean authorities after secretly transferring oil to a North Korean vessel in international waters in a ship-to-ship transfer prohibited by the United Nations Security Council, government officials said Friday.
South Korean customs authorities took and searched the vessel, Lighthouse Winmore, when it entered the country’s Yeosu Port on Nov. 24 after transferring 600 tons of refined petroleum to a North Korean vessel on Oct. 19, the officials said.
UNSC Resolution 2375, adopted in September, bans member countries from ship-to-ship transfer of any goods for North Korea. Resolution 2397, adopted just a week earlier allows a country to capture and look into a vessel suspected of engaging in prohibited activities with North Korea.
The Hong Kong-flagged ship was chartered by Taiwanese company Billions Bunker Group and previously visited South Korea’s Yeosu Port on Oct. 11 to load up on Japanese refined petroleum and head to its claimed destination in Taiwan four days later, the authorities noted.
Instead of going to Taiwan, however, the vessel transferred the oil to a North Korean ship, the Sam Jong 2, and three other non-North Korean vessels in international waters in the East China Sea, they said. [Yonhap]
You can read the rest at the link, but the ROK is expected to hold on to the ship for six months while the legal process plays out. It seems to me the ROK ought to just auction the ship off. How many companies would want to do illegal oil transfers with North Korea if they risk having their shipped sold off?
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean authorities have seized a Panama-flagged vessel suspected of transferring oil products to North Korea in violation of international sanctions, a customs official said on Sunday.
The seizure was the second to be revealed by South Korea within a few days, as the United Nations steps up efforts to squeeze essential oil supplies to the reclusive North following its nuclear or ballistic missile tests.
The ship, KOTI, was seized at Pyeongtaek-Dangjin port, the official told Reuters, without elaborating, due to the sensitivity of the issue. The port is on the west coast, south of Incheon.
Looks like the squeeze is on for reals this time. As more shipping companies lose vessels trying to make a few extra bucks, their profit/loss statement will swing hard into the red.
South Korea siezes a second ship:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles-southkorea-ship/south-korea-seizes-second-ship-suspected-of-providing-oil-to-north-korea-idUSKBN1EP04P
Looks like the squeeze is on for reals this time. As more shipping companies lose vessels trying to make a few extra bucks, their profit/loss statement will swing hard into the red.
More at the link.
~Scoops McGee
Is Moon getting wiser?
Roh’s ghost told him to do it.