In a joint statement released yesterday, the foreign ministers from a coalition of nations, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom, the High Representative of the European Union, and the Secretary of State of the United States, have taken a unified stance against the unlawful transfer of arms from North Korea (DPRK) to Russia.
The ministers collectively affirmed, “The recent sanctions designations by each of our governments represent a coordinated effort to hold the DPRK and Russia to account and to impose costs on actors and entities involved in the unlawful transfer of arms from the DPRK to Russia for use in attacking Ukraine.”
The statement highlighted the coalition’s resolute opposition to these arms transfers, which have been used by Russia to strike at Ukraine’s critical infrastructure, exacerbating the suffering of the Ukrainian people. The ministers expressed grave concerns over the deepening cooperation between the DPRK and Russia, which stands in stark violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.
The group condemned Russia’s veto of a UN Security Council resolution intended to extend the mandate of the UN 1718 Committee Panel of Experts. This veto, they argue, aims to strip UN Member States of the necessary objective and independent information required to enforce the binding Security Council resolutions concerning the DPRK.
The statement concluded with a call for the DPRK and Russia to halt the unlawful arms transfers immediately and urged the DPRK to abandon all nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, and related programs in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner. The coalition also implored the DPRK to engage in diplomacy, which they see as the sole path to lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.
