A cargo ship is loaded with coal during the opening ceremony of a new dock at the North Korean port of Rajin in this July 18, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Yuri Maltsev/Files
By Jack Kim and Ju-min Park
SEOUL, March 8 (Reuters) – South Korea said on Tuesday it would impose new sanctions against 40 individuals and 30 entities because of suspected links to North Korea’s weapons program and would ban vessels that had stopped at North Korean ports in the past 180 days.
The new measures are designed to discourage shipping firms and trading companies from doing business with the North to further isolate it, South Korea said.
The decision to issue more unilateral sanctions against the North follows a U.N. Security Council resolution triggered by the isolate state’s fourth nuclear test in January and a long-range rocket launch last month.
Tension in the region is high as South Korean and U.S. troops began military exercises on Monday in an annual test of their defenses against the North, which called the drills “nuclear war moves” and threatened to respond with an all-out offensive.
The individuals subject to financial sanctions announced on Tuesday include a Singaporean and a Taiwan national who are heads of a shipping firm and a trading company, the government said.
South Korea also blacklisted a Thai shipping firm called Mariner’s Shipping & Trading and Taiwan company Royal Team Corporation.
South Korea will ban those on the list from engaging in financial transactions with South Korean entities and freeze assets that are held in the country, the government said.
After the North’s rocket launch last month, South Korea suspended operations at the Kaesong industrial zone, just on the North Korean since of their common border, which had been run jointly with the North for more than a decade.
The industrial park, operated with investment from the capitalist South, was a key source of hard currency for the impoverished North.
South Korea would also discontinue participation in a pilot project that brought Russian coal to South Korea through the North Korean port of Rajin, a foreign ministry official told reporters in a joint briefing with other government agencies.
Trial shipments had been carried out in 2014 and 2015, under a consortium involving South Korean steelmaker POSCO, Hyundai Merchant Marine and railway operator Korail, from Rajin.
The three shipments, of a total 294,000 tonnes of coal, represented less than 1 percent of South Korea’s overall imports for that period.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Russian leader Vladimir Putin signed an agreement in 2013 to cooperate and promote the project linking Russia’s Khasan and Rajin.
Lee Suk-joon, minister of South Korea’s office for government policy coordination, said the government continued to advise against South Koreans using North Korean restaurants overseas. South Korea views such establishments as a source of foreign currency for the isolated state. (Editing by Michael Perry, Robert Birsel)
(Bloomberg) — Iran’s oil production has defied years of US sanctions to return to almost full capacity — a tide of supply that looks increasingly vulnerable as tensions with Israel...
(Bloomberg) — Climate-friendly hydrogen was one of the most-hyped sectors in green energy. Now the reality of its high cost is taking its toll. In recent months, some of the...
(Bloomberg) — Canada is working with Nordic countries to create a new Arctic security coalition that would exclude Russia and offer a place to coordinate on defense, intelligence and cyber...
October 3, 2024
Total Views: 613
Why Join the gCaptain Club?
Access exclusive insights, engage in vibrant discussions, and gain perspectives from our CEO.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.