The United States and a number of its allies are accusing North Korea of breaching the UN sanctions cap on refined petroleum between ships at sea.
Lee Seung-jae reports.
According to reports by Reuters and Bloomberg,... the United States and dozens of its allies, including South Korea, have called for tighter measures on North Korea,... after issuing a complaint that the North conducted 79 illegal deliveries of refined petroleum this year,... and have breached the UN's annual cap of 500-thousand barrels.
The U.S.-led complaint to the UN Security Council, which was dated Tuesday,... calls for restrictions on the North's refined petroleum imports,... saying it's critical in maintaining pressure on the regime,... "including those parties responsible for its WMD program."
The North Korean mission to the UN did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While the U.S. complaint does not specifically name who it believes is supplying the fuel,... former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley previously accused Russia in September last year,... of "cheating" UN sanctions on North Korea.
Moscow strongly rejected the accusation.
However, Reuters reports Russian tankers have supplied fuel to North Korea by transferring cargoes at sea.
Meanwhile, U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun has been spotted in New York City,... as it was reported he met with the 15 members of the UN Security Council behind closed doors on Wednesday.
While not a member of the Security Council,... the Representative of South Korea to the UN, Cho Tae-yul, was reportedly present since it involved Korean Peninsula affairs.
Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.
