U.S. seizes North Korean coal ship, accuses Pyongyang of violating sanctions - The Washington Post

U.S. authorities have seized a North Korean ship used to sell coal allegedly in violation of international sanctions, the first such move by Justice Department officials as they ratchet up enforcement efforts against the regime in Pyongyang.

Justice Department officials on Thursday confirmed the Wise Honest is approaching U.S. territorial waters, with coordination of the U.S. Marshals and the Coast Guard.

“This sanctions-busting ship is now out of service,” Assistant Attorney General John Demers said in announcing the seizure.

[North Korea launches short-range missiles as U.S. conducts ICBM test]

The 17,601-ton, single hull bulk carrier ship is one of North Korea’s largest, and U.S. authorities said it was used to illicitly ship coal and deliver heavy machinery to North Korea.

Media reports from last year indicate Indonesian authorities first stopped the vessel on suspicion of violating sanctions. U.S. officials would not say Thursday if Indonesia turned over the vessel.

The U.N. Security Council passed a resolution in 2017 banning North Korea from exporting coal.

The move marks an escalation of U.S. government pressure on Pyongyang, even as President Trump has spoken glowingly about North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Court papers filed in federal court in New York City said shipments by the Wise Honest and other North Korean vessels “provide a critical source of revenue for DPRK-based companies and for the North Korean government.”

“Large quantities of coal were exported from North Korea . . . in violation of United Nations Security Council prohibitions,” the 32-page filing said. “In return, large shipments of heavy machinery were returned to North Korea using the same vessels.”

The court filing says that payments for improvements to the Wise Honest were done via U.S. banks, also in violation of sanctions.

[Kim Jong Un has a fleet of ghost ships]

Experts have said that to evade sanctions, North Korea conducts its illicit trading with a fleet of ghost ships that paint false names on their hulls, steal identification numbers from other vessels and execute their trades via ship-to-ship transfers at sea, to avoid prying eyes at ports.

In the case of the Wise Honest, a globe-trotting North Korean salesman arranged the 2018 shipment by holding meetings at Pyongyang’s embassy in Jakarta — and then paid an Indonesian broker through bank transfers facilitated by JPMorgan Chase, according to bank documents and other evidence gathered by sanctions monitors.

Experts say sanctions enforcement is dependent on the willingness of foreign countries to assist in seizures and charges when violations are discovered.

[Judge approves subpoenas in North Korean sanctions probe]

In a separate case last month, a federal judge in the District of Columbia approved a set of subpoenas targeting the financial records of Chinese banks which might show how the North Korean regime has sought to evade sanctions over its nuclear program.

In that case, investigators are probing whether a Hong Kong corporation may have helped North Korea evade sanctions.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-seizes-north-korean-coal-ship-accuses-pyongyang-of-violating-sanctions/2019/05/09/8fc50d86-726e-11e9-8be0-ca575670e91c_story.html

2019-05-09 16:27:25Z
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