S. Korea to lead new N. Korea sanctions watchdog, replacing UN panel

Korea Herald

21-02-2025

Seoul sees 1st MSMT meeting in Washington under Trump as pivotal after launch under Biden
South Korea will take the lead this year in operating a new multilateral sanctions monitoring body and publishing its reports, filling the gaps in sanctions enforcement and monitoring on North Korea left by the dissolution of the UN Panel of Experts following Russia's veto.
The outcome came after the inaugural meeting of the steering committee of the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team or MSMT in Washington on Wednesday, local time, in the presence of 11 member countries, inclduing South Korea, the United States and Japan. The other countries that attended the working-level meeting were Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
The meeting wrapped up with issuing a joint statement on Friday, reaffirming the MSMT's goals and the participating countries' commitment to enforcing UN Security Council resolutions.
'The MSMT's purpose is to assist the full implementation of UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs) on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) by publishing reports and information based on rigorous inquiry into relevant sanctions violations and evasion attempts as well as successful enforcement efforts,' the joint statement read, referring to North Korea by its official name.
'The MSMT Steering Committee underscores our shared determination to fully implement relevant UNSCRs regarding the DPRK,' the statement added.
South Korea initially proposed as well as spearheaded the MSMT's launch in October last year, with its launch ceremony taking place in Seoul.
South Korea will take the lead in the MSMT's operations this year and in a report on North Korea's sanctions violations and implementation monitoring, the first of which will be published by spring, The Korea Herald learned from diplomatic sources familiar with the matter.
The report will be jointly prepared by 11 member countries, however.
The report will zoom in on North Korea's breach of UN sanctions, which have particular security implications and timeless. These include Russian-North Korean military collaboration and illicit cyber activities to funnel funds into its nuclear and missile programs, The Korea Herald also learned from the sources.
Why first meeting matters
The South Korean government deemed the first meeting in Washington to be of paramount significance, The Korea Herald learned from dialogue with officials.
Seoul considered the meeting a manifestation of the second Trump administration and the international community's determination to continue enforcing and enhancing sanctions, as well as an opportunity to reaffirm the validity of the MSMT as a sanctions monitoring mechanism, despite the change in US leadership, following its launch last October under the Biden administration.
When asked about its functions, a Foreign Ministry official, who wished to remain anonymous, explained on Thursday that "matters such as which country will take the lead in writing the report, how and when information will be collected, when the report will be published and what topics it will cover are all discussed and decided by the steering committee."
The official declined to divulge further information on agenda topics for the first meeting. Most decisions are kept confidential among the member states due to the sensitive nature of the discussions.
When asked how frequently the reports are published, the unidentified official pointed to the publication cycle of the UN Panel of Experts or PoE report first, which was issued biannually—in the first and second half — as a reference point.
"Nevertheless, rather than being bound rigidly to that schedule, we believe we have more discretion because we are not constrained by the dynamics of the of the UN Security Council. Seizing on this advantage, we look forward to having greater flexibility in determining the frequency of issuing the reports," the official said.
Fewer than ten other countries have expressed their intent to join the MSMT as members, The Korea Herald learned from dialogue with one of the diplomatic sources.
In the joint statement, 11 countries unanimously urged nations that have not fully enforced sanctions to do so on North Korea, without explicitly naming them.
'We reaffirm that the path to dialogue remains open, and call on all states to join global efforts to maintain international peace and security in the face of ongoing threats from the DPRK and those that facilitate its UNSCR violations," the statement read.
The MSMT was established around seven months after Russia, using its veto as a permanent member of the UN Security Council in late March last year, blocked the renewal of the 1718 Committee Panel of Experts' mandate. Since 2009, the PoE has been tasked with overseeing the enforcement of UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea and issuing biannual reports on sanctions violations.