By Ian Talley and Michael R. Gordon Updated Feb. 23, 2018 10:33 a.m. ET
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WASHINGTON—The Trump administration on Friday levied what it called its largest ever North Korea sanctions package, hitting dozens of shipping and trading companies as it seeks to further cut off foreign-currency revenues keeping the nuclear-armed regime afloat.
The administration sanctioned nearly 60 companies and ships and one individual it says are aiding North Korea in its efforts to evade an international ban on coal exports and fuel imports. Those efforts help leader Kim Jong Un maintain power as he pursues a intercontinental ballistic missile that can target America’s mainland.
Friday’s effort is part of a broader U.S. “maximum pressure campaign” meant to force Pyongyang to the negotiating table and persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and long-range missiles. After a battery of ballistic missile tests by North Korea over the last two years, the U.S. has been able to prod the United Nations Security Council to ratchet up global sanctions against North Korea, banning much of the country’s trade.
Ivanka Trump Meets South Korean Leader
“This will significantly hinder the Kim regime’s capacity to conduct evasive maritime activities that facilitate illicit coal and fuel transports, and erode its abilities to ship goods through international waters,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
“We know they are feeling the pressure,” a senior administration official said. Friday’s action is meant to send a message to Mr. Kim that there is “no other path for him to take than denuclearization.”
Despite its success at the U.N., the U.S. has still struggled to get several key U.N. members, notably China and Russia, to fully enforce the sanctions. The U.S., for example, asked a U.N. sanctions committeeto list 18 ships as sanctions violators, but China prevented 10 of those ships from being designated, officials disclosed Thursday. The sanctions committee operates by consensus, so China effective has a veto over what ships get listed.
As a result, the U.S. is also taking unilateral action in sanctioning ships, companies and their owners, as it has in the past against Chinese banks and other firms. The ships and companies are registered, located or flagged in North Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and several small nations known as maritime havens.
The ships the Treasury Department designated Friday include a vessel China blocked the U.N. from listing in December as a sanctions violator: The Sam Jong 2, whose registered owner is a Chinese company.
As much as U.S. officials are touting the effectiveness of their sanctions campaign, U.S. intelligence officials have said Mr. Kim is so wedded to his nuclear weapons and missiles that he is unlikely to give them up.
Treasury also issued an alert about deceptive North Korean shipping practices, noting the example of the Kum Un San 3. The Wall Street Journal disclosed in January that the North Korean-flagged vessel had been photographed trying to hide its identity by painting over hits name and displaying a false name on its stern.
Among the ships sanctioned Friday by the Treasury Department is the Koti, a Panama-flagged vessel that has been impounded by South Korea.
Before being impounded, the Koti was involved in a ship-to-ship transfer, possibly of oil, with the Kum Un San 3.
The U.S. is also considering additional enforcement measures, including having the U.S. Navy stop and inspect ships believed to be carrying prohibited cargo to and from North Korea, a procedure naval officials call “hail and query.” One new law the administration will soon start enforcing is a ban on accepting ships into U.S. ports that have visited other ports that have allowed entry to sanctioned ships. That, say analysts, could have a far-reaching ripple-effect that should further restrict North Korea sanctions evasion.
Administration officials say the sanctions have hurt the North Korean economy. In an apparent effort to conserve fuel, North Korea has scaled back its annual winter maneuvers, which run from December through March.
Christopher Ford, a senior State Department official on nonproliferation issues, said economic sanctions have also been constraining North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.
“We think it has affected their mass destruction military programs, making it harder and more painful for them to advance them,” Mr. Ford said Thursday.
A “world-wide threat assessment” by U.S. intelligence agencies issued this month said Pyongyang would likely continue its missile tests as it seeks to develop the means to strike the U.S. with a nuclear weapon.
“In the wake of accelerated missile testing since 2016, North Korea is likely to press ahead with more tests in 2018,” the report said. The efforts that Pyongyang is making on its nuclear and missile programs, the report added, “suggests the regime doesn’t intend to negotiate them away.”
Write to Ian Talley at ian.talley@wsj.com and Michael R. Gordon at Michael.Gordon@wsj.com
WASHINGTON—The Trump administration on Friday levied what it called its largest ever North Korea sanctions package, hitting dozens of shipping and trading companies as it seeks to further cut off foreign-currency revenues keeping the nuclear-armed regime afloat.
The administration sanctioned nearly 60 companies and ships and one individual it says are aiding North Korea in its efforts to evade an international ban on coal exports and fuel imports. Those efforts help leader Kim Jong Un maintain power as he pursues a intercontinental ballistic missile that can target America’s mainland.
Friday’s effort is part of a broader U.S. “maximum pressure campaign” meant to force Pyongyang to the negotiating table and persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and long-range missiles. After a battery of ballistic missile tests by North Korea over the last two years, the U.S. has been able to prod the United Nations Security Council to ratchet up global sanctions against North Korea, banning much of the country’s trade.
Ivanka Trump Meets South Korean Leader
“This will significantly hinder the Kim regime’s capacity to conduct evasive maritime activities that facilitate illicit coal and fuel transports, and erode its abilities to ship goods through international waters,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
“We know they are feeling the pressure,” a senior administration official said. Friday’s action is meant to send a message to Mr. Kim that there is “no other path for him to take than denuclearization.”
Despite its success at the U.N., the U.S. has still struggled to get several key U.N. members, notably China and Russia, to fully enforce the sanctions. The U.S., for example, asked a U.N. sanctions committeeto list 18 ships as sanctions violators, but China prevented 10 of those ships from being designated, officials disclosed Thursday. The sanctions committee operates by consensus, so China effective has a veto over what ships get listed.
As a result, the U.S. is also taking unilateral action in sanctioning ships, companies and their owners, as it has in the past against Chinese banks and other firms. The ships and companies are registered, located or flagged in North Korea, China, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong and several small nations known as maritime havens.
The ships the Treasury Department designated Friday include a vessel China blocked the U.N. from listing in December as a sanctions violator: The Sam Jong 2, whose registered owner is a Chinese company.
As much as U.S. officials are touting the effectiveness of their sanctions campaign, U.S. intelligence officials have said Mr. Kim is so wedded to his nuclear weapons and missiles that he is unlikely to give them up.
Treasury also issued an alert about deceptive North Korean shipping practices, noting the example of the Kum Un San 3. The Wall Street Journal disclosed in January that the North Korean-flagged vessel had been photographed trying to hide its identity by painting over hits name and displaying a false name on its stern.
Among the ships sanctioned Friday by the Treasury Department is the Koti, a Panama-flagged vessel that has been impounded by South Korea.
Before being impounded, the Koti was involved in a ship-to-ship transfer, possibly of oil, with the Kum Un San 3.
The U.S. is also considering additional enforcement measures, including having the U.S. Navy stop and inspect ships believed to be carrying prohibited cargo to and from North Korea, a procedure naval officials call “hail and query.” One new law the administration will soon start enforcing is a ban on accepting ships into U.S. ports that have visited other ports that have allowed entry to sanctioned ships. That, say analysts, could have a far-reaching ripple-effect that should further restrict North Korea sanctions evasion.
Administration officials say the sanctions have hurt the North Korean economy. In an apparent effort to conserve fuel, North Korea has scaled back its annual winter maneuvers, which run from December through March.
Christopher Ford, a senior State Department official on nonproliferation issues, said economic sanctions have also been constraining North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.
“We think it has affected their mass destruction military programs, making it harder and more painful for them to advance them,” Mr. Ford said Thursday.
A “world-wide threat assessment” by U.S. intelligence agencies issued this month said Pyongyang would likely continue its missile tests as it seeks to develop the means to strike the U.S. with a nuclear weapon.
“In the wake of accelerated missile testing since 2016, North Korea is likely to press ahead with more tests in 2018,” the report said. The efforts that Pyongyang is making on its nuclear and missile programs, the report added, “suggests the regime doesn’t intend to negotiate them away.”
Write to Ian Talley at ian.talley@wsj.com and Michael R. Gordon at Michael.Gordon@wsj.com
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