South Korea joins 10 other nations to form new sanction monitoring body meant to keep N.Korea in check

A multinational body to monitor sanctions against North Korea is in the works which will serve as an alternative to the now-dissolved UN body, the South Korean foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

The new monitoring body will have 11 member countries and will seek to replace the United Nations Panel of Experts on North Korea which was disbanded in April due to a Russian veto.

Russia’s veto brought an end to the UN body that was responsible for monitoring sanctions aimed at curbing North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs for 15 years.

Which are the 11 countries part of the new group?

The members of the new body called the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT), are:

• South Korea

• US

• Japan

• France

• UK

• Germany

• Italy

• The Netherlands

• Canada

• Australia

• New Zealand

What is MSMT’s goal?

Since the UN body ceased to exist, Seoul and other countries have been working to apply different methods to continue sanctions monitoring, with the US ambassador to the UN saying they are exploring “some creative ways” and “out-of-the-box thinking” to ensure the continuation of monitoring activities.

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The team is meant to continue the UN panel’s work, including issuing regular reports on sanctions enforcement.

MSMT aims to ensure that “accurate” reports are published on the implementation of sanctions against the Kim Jong Un-ruled nation and that it does not violate them.

The MSMT will “monitor and report violations and evasions of the sanction measures” of the UN Security Council resolutions, it said.

“Our preference would have been to continue the previous regime,” said US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell in a joint press conference in Seoul Wednesday.

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“That avenue was prevented by Russian intransigence, so this is the approach that we’ve taken,” he added.

Kim Hong-kyun, South Korea’s first vice foreign minister, said the North “continues to violate UN Security Council resolutions in various areas”.

With inputs from agencies