The United Nations Security Council has lifted sanctions on four ships on Monday at the request of China. The said ships were previously blacklisted by the U.N. due to its links to North Korea's arms trade. The U.N. Security Council granted the removal of the sanctions after China assured that the vessels would not employ North Korean crews.
On March 16, China sought the help of the United States in removing four of its ships from the U.N. blacklist, Reuters reported.
A diplomatic cable sent from the U.S. permanent mission at the United Nations to a group of U.S. embassies shows top diplomats from the United States and China at variance about the newly imposed sanctions on North Korea. The U.S. mission at the United Nations declined to comment about the cable.
The ships in question were among the 31 vessels sanctioned by the United Nations Security Council on March 2 during to its reported association with the Ocean Maritime Management, a North Korea shipping firm known engaging in the transport of arms and other illegal products to Pyongyang.
According to Kyodo News, the first of the first ships to be detained was the Jin Teng cargo ship, which was apprehended in the Philippines, followed by the Grand Karo which was faced problems entering northeastern China.
"We discovered that they are not OMM ships," Chinese U.N. Ambassador Liu Jieyi said. "The basis for the listing of the ships is basically that they belong to OMM, so if you make a mistake, then you correct the mistake."
Although Bejing is known as Pyongyang's primary ally and trade partner, it has managed to show a united front with Washington against the isolationist state. The Korea Herald noted that China's local governments have been briefed on how to follow through with the new U.N. sanctions against North Korea, particular with respect to limiting the volume of imports.
The new United Nations sanction against Pyongyang imposes more stringent limits and regulations on the importation of North Korean coal, iron and other mineral resources especially if the profits of the sale will fund the country's nuclear and missile programs. North Korea, however, are allowed to continue exports of their products to China provided that such transactions are done for "livelihood purposes."
