Japan reports suspicious activity between Chinese and North Korean ships in suspected breach of UN sanctions
Pyongyang is subject to a series of UN Security Council sanctions, including one prohibiting all member states from facilitating or engaging in ship-to-ship transfers of goods to or from North Korean-flagged vessels
Japan has reported a new suspected sanctions violation by Pyongyang to the UN after spotting an apparent cargo transfer between a ship marked with Chinese characters and a North Korean vessel, the Japanese foreign ministry said.
The incident is the third time this year that Tokyo has reported a cargo transfer by a North Korean vessel in violation of UN sanctions over Pyongyang’s banned nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
Japan’s foreign ministry said late on Tuesday a military patrol plane and an escort vessel observed the apparent transfer in the East China Sea on Friday afternoon.
The Japanese navy “found the Yu Jong 2, a North Korean-flagged tanker, lying alongside a small vessel of unknown nationality … on the high sea” around 250km (155 miles) offshore from the Chinese city of Shanghai, the foreign ministry said.
Four Chinese characters reading “Min Ning De You 078” meaning “Fujian Province, Ningde City, oil tanker 078” in English, were on the small vessel, the ministry said.