SURPRISE

UN: North Korea Has Not Stopped Its Nuclear Program

Experts warn of a “massive increase in illicit ship-to-ship transfers of petroleum products.”

North Korea has continued to develop its nuclear and missile programs despite international sanctions, according to a new report by the United Nations. The report, which was submitted to the UN Security Council late Friday, warns that Pyongyang has stepped up activities in a range of sanctioned spheres that include transferring coal at sea and defying an arms embargo, as well as financial sanctions, according to the Associated Press. North Korea “has not stopped its nuclear and missile programs and continued to defy Security Council resolutions through a massive increase in illicit ship-to-ship transfers of petroleum products, as well as through transfers of coal at sea during 2018,” the report says. UN experts say Pyongyang has also continued military cooperation with Syria and has been attempting to sell weapons to Yemen’s Houthis. The findings come after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said North Korea is “closer” to denuclearization following Kim Jong Un’s summit with President Trump in June. Pompeo acknowledged, however, that there is still a “ways to go” before complete denuclearization as North Korea continues to violate sanctions.