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UN Security Council discusses Kosovo

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Media, both print and online, cover yesterday’s session of the UN Security Council on Kosovo, most of which highlight ambassador Vlora Citaku’s address where she said that Kosovo remains strongly committed to the EU-facilitated dialogue with Serbia and criticized Serbia for hindering Kosovo’s membership to Interpol and UNESCO saying the decision of Chinese authorities not to grant visas to Kosovo officials largely contributed to the withdrawal from Interpol bid. Citaku disputed figures presented by Belgrade authorities that the number of displaced Serbs is 200,000 saying they were inaccurate. She also requested redefinition of the UN’s role in Kosovo saying the mission is of a peacekeeping nature and peace has already been achieved in Kosovo. Serbia’s Foreign Minister, Ivica Dacic, on his part criticized authorities in Kosovo for not establishing the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities and urged them to do so as soon as possible.Meanwhile, most media highlight the statement of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and UNMIK chief, Zahir Tanin, saying that the time for action now moves ahead of the time for excuses. SRSG Tanin said that signs of political will and commitment to move forward are increasingly evident. Tanin commended the parties for integration of Serb judges and prosecutors to the Kosovo’s justice system while with regards to CEFTA, he underlined that Pristina representatives attend all meetings and that UNMIK’s presence is limited by legal statutes.

Saudi Arabia calls on UN Security Council for action against Iran

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Saudi Arabia called on the United Nations Security Council to take appropriate measures against Iran’s active support of terrorism saying that it is seeking to compromise the security of the Kingdom and the region. In a letter presented by the Saudi mission to the United Nations on Wednesday, ahead of the closed session on the Humanitarian situation in Yemen, the Kingdom detailed the terrorist actions of the Iranian allied Houthi militias. The Houthi militias resorted only to aggression and violence since the beginning of the Yemeni crisis, the letter said. The militias refusal to the return of legitimacy, it said, or abide by the Security Council resolutions, has led to humanitarian disasters adding to that their dismissal of all political solutions to the conflict. Saudi Arabia stressed on the fact that Iran’s continuous supply of weapons to the militias in Yemen through smuggling routes, and the presence of Hezbollah fighters on the ground to assemble and operate these weapons, is clear evidence of Iran’s aggression.

China defends August trade boost with North Korea, saying it was permitted under UN sanctions

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China on Monday defended its growing trade with North Korea saying it was permitted under UN Security Council sanctions that state they should avoid hurting “humanitarian needs”. China, as the restive state’s main trading partner, “strictly implements” sanctions aimed at stopping its pursuit of nuclear and missile technology, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said. According to Chinese customs data, its exports to North Korea rose 31.4 per cent in August from a year earlier, while imports fell 9.5 per cent. Beijing pointed out that the sanctions did not prohibit food sales and argued against measures that might harm the North Korean public. Beijing also has cut into Pyongyang’s foreign revenue by ordering North Korean-owned restaurants and other businesses and ventures with Chinese partners to close. “The Security Council pointed out that the relevant resolutions should not inflict negative impacts on the livelihood and humanitarian needs of North Korea”, Geng said at a regular briefing. One of five permanent Security Council members with veto power over UN actions, China does not want to push North Korea too hard out of fear Kim’s government might collapse.

Smugglers prep to capitalize on skyrocketing price of sanctioned fish

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The price of North Korean seafood for sale in China’s Yanji City has spiked recently due to coordinated sanctions from the international community against the regime. Since United Nations Security Resolution 2371 came into effect on August 15th, North Korean seafood sales have slumped in China’s markets. “At the beginning of this year, pollock was selling for about 8 yuan apiece, but the price has nearly doubled to about 15 yuan since the sanctions,” said an inside source in China during a telephone conversation with Daily NK on October 13. “It’s risen to practically the cost of gold, so most people won’t consider buying it. Before the implementation of the sanctions, North Korean pollack was relatively cheap. Some Chinese merchants expanded their procurement at that point. They waited for the sanctions to go into effect so they could take advantage of the scarcity by selling at a higher price and increasing their profit margins,” the source said. A separate source in China close to North Korean affairs told Daily NK that some smugglers are freezing as much fish as they can get their hands on. They anticipate that the sanctions will loosen up in future, and are making the appropriate preparations.

North Korea: cargo ships tracked in Chinese waters after UN imposes all-ports ban for violating sanctions

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The UN Security Council has banned all nations from allowing four ships that transported prohibited goods to and from North Korea to enter any port in their country. Hugh Griffiths, head of the panel of experts investigating the implementation of UN sanctions against North Korea, announced the port bans at a briefing to UN member states on Monday. Griffiths later told several reporters that “this is the first time in UN history”. He identified the four cargo ships as the Petrel 8, Hao Fan 6, Tong San 2 and Jie Shun. According to MarineTraffic, a maritime database that monitors vessels and their moments, Petrel 8 is registered in Comoros, Hao Fan 6 in St Kitts and Nevis, and Tong San 2 in North Korea. It does not list the flag of Tong San 2 but said that on October 3 it was in the Bohai Sea off north China. Griffiths said the four ships were officially listed on October 5 “for transporting prohibited goods”, stressing that this was “swift action” by the sanctions committee following the August 6 Security Council resolution that authorised port bans. Griffiths told UN diplomats that: “is continuing its attempts to export coal” in violation of UN sanctions.

North Korea fuel prices soar after UN sanctions capped supply

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Petrol and diesel prices rose sharply in North Korea after its sixth nuclear test and as the UN Security Council imposed new sanctions capping fuel supply. In the capital Pyongyang and northern border cities of Sinuiju and Hyesan spiked to 2.51 dollar per kg as of September 13, up 45.1 per cent from 1.73 dollar per kg on September 5 and Diesel prices also surged 61.5 per cent from 1.30 dollar per kg to 2.10 dollar per kg during the same period. According to Reuters analysis of data compiled by the Daily NK website. North Korea launched a missile over Japan into the Pacific Ocean on Thursday in defiance of the new Security Council. Anyway the White House national security adviser H.R. McMaster said on Friday, after the latest North Korean missile launch, that the United States was running out of patience: “We’ve been kicking the can down the road, and we’re out of road”.

North Korea vows to continue nuclear tests despite condemnation from UN Security Council

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North Korea’s statement followed an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council where the country was condemned once more for its behaviour. Kim Jong-un said: “the country was close to the goal of completing their nuclear force and should use all state power to finish as they have nearly reached the terminal”. The Security Council condemned North Korea’s most recent missile launch, putting up a unified front in the face of Pyongyang’s defiance of the body’s efforts to halt international trade with the country. Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia expressed frustration over the failure of the Security Council’s actions in stopping North Korea’s nuclear provocations. The US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson for suggesting that Russia and China aren’t doing enough to stop Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme and demand it that China and Russia take “direct actions” against Pyongyang. “China and Russia must indicate their intolerance for these reckless missile launches by taking direct actions of their own”. Tillerson said in a statement issued soon after the missile firing.

A total oil embargo on North Korea would only lead to war, as it did with imperial Japan

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A total oil embargo against North Korea would be likely to provoke the same result as it did with imperial Japan , war with the US and friends. Last week, following a series of missile launches and an underground nuclear test, the US ambassador to the UN declared North Korea to be begging for war. This week, the 15- member UN Security Council unanimously passed a raft of new sanctions, including a universal ban on purchasing North Korean textiles (the country’s second-largest export, after coal) and the cessation of all gas exports to the isolated state. What’s more interesting is what was culled from America original proposal: the use of force, if deemed necessary, to board and inspect ships to enforce these economic sanctions; an asset freeze; a travel ban for Kim Jong-un. China and Russia know that a complete oil cut-off would heighten North Korea’s self-destructive tendencies and hasten its collapse. Sanctions have not worked and now cannot work. North Korea is not going to give up.

North Korea vows to accelerate weapons programme after ‘evil’ sanctions imposed by United Nations

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North Korea decide to accelerate its weapons programmes in response of sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council. The UN Security Council unanimously imposed an eighth set of sanctions on the North on Monday, banning it from trading in textiles and restricting its oil imports, which US President Donald Trump said was a prelude to stronger measures. The North’s foreign ministry condemned the new measures in the strongest terms, calling them a full-scale economic blockade driven by the US and aimed at suffocating its state and people. It was another illegal resolution on sanctions piloted by the US, it said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency. The North says it needs nuclear weapons to protect itself from hostile US forces and analysts believe Pyongyang’s weapons programme has made rapid progress under leader Kim Jong-un, with previous sanctions having done little to deter it.

Japanese FM discusses North Korea crisis with Egyptian counterpart

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Japanese Foreign Minister Tarō Kōno concluded meetings with President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry on Tuesday and Monday.In his meeting with Shoukry Monday stressed upon the necessity for North Korea to commit to the UN Security Council resolutions on Pyongyang nuclear activities.Meanwhile, Shoukry thanked the Japanese Minister for the Japanese support for the Cairo International Centre for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping and Peace building since 2008, a ministry-affiliated centre which provides trainings on diplomatic conflict resolution.On a further note, Al-Sisi told the minister he hoped Japanese investments in Egypt would increase.The president expressed Egypt’s proud of the Egyptian-Japanese cooperation in developing education, and keenness on benefiting from the Japan’s experience in several fields including education.

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