South Korea sends sanctioned material to
North Korea, politician says
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[August 24, 2018]
By Joyce Lee and Jeongmin Kim
SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea has sent 1
billion won ($893,239.96) worth of sanctioned material to North Korea,
customs data showed on Friday, raising concern ties with the United
States could be damaged as the South pursues cooperation with the North.
The United States is pressing North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons
program, calling for stringent implementation of tough U.S. and U.N.
sanctions.
But at the same time, its ally, South Korea, is trying to increase
cooperation with its old rival.
South Korea transferred about 113 tonnes of materials and equipment
including steel, copper, nickel and water heaters to North Korea in June
and July, according to customs data released by opposition lawmaker
Cheong Yang-seog.
The material and equipment identified in the data are banned from being
exported to North Korea under U.N. Security Council Resolution 2397,
Cheong's office said.
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The Korea Customs Service declined to comment on the data, directing
inquiries to another ministry that handles inter-Korean relations. It
also declined to comment.
A South Korean foreign ministry official also declined to comment on the
customs data, but said materials and equipment are being sent for a
liaison office that South Korea is building just over the border in
North Korea, as part of efforts championed by the South's President Moon
Jae-in to improve ties.
"All the material, equipment and electricity are for the office's
operation and to ensure the convenience of our personnel," said the
ministry official.
"It does not give any economic gain to North Korea, so we are concluding
that it does not damage the objective of the sanctions."
Moon is committed to securing diplomatic progress with North Korea, in
part by opening this year the office in Kaesong, on the North Korea side
of the border.
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![](../images/082418pics/news_r33.jpg)
South Korean soldiers stand guard at the truce village of Panmunjom
inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, South
Korea, April 18, 2018. Picture taken on April 18, 2018. REUTERS/Kim
Hong-Ji
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Cheong was not available for comment but he has been raising
objections to the lack of information on the amount of money the
government has been spending on the liaison office.
He and other opposition politicians have raised concern that the
transfer of material for the office could violate U.N. and U.S.
sanctions against North Korea.
Last month, South Korea's customs agency said three South Korean
firms imported coal from North Korea disguised as Russian products
in violation of U.N. resolutions.
Shin Beom-chul, senior fellow at Asan Institute for Policy Studies
in Seoul, said such sanctions busting, together with South Korea's
push to expand ties with the North, could exacerbate friction with
the United States on how to handle North Korea.
"If we go on like this the gap of disagreement will widen, and can
become a more serious issue," Shin said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed in broad terms to work toward
denuclearization of the Korean peninsula in a historic summit with
U.S. President Donald Trump in June.
But there has been no indication that North Korea had stopped its
nuclear activities, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
said in a report on Monday.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is set to visit North Korea next
week.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee and Jeongmin Kim; Editing by Robert Birsel)
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