GOC TO IMPLEMENT SANCTIONS AGAINST NORTH KOREA

UNCLAS ZAGREB 001457 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS Department for EUR/SCE, NP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PARM PREL KNNP HR KN SUBJECT: GOC TO IMPLEMENT SANCTIONS AGAINST NORTH KOREA 1.(U) PolOff delivered reftel demarche on 11/16/06 to Head of MFA Dept for International Security Sanja Bujas Juraga. ¶2. (U) On 11/29/06, Juraga advised that GoC was in the process of implementing UNSCR 1718 sanctions against North Korea. The GoC's recently formed Interministerial Working Group on International Restrictive Measures will meet Dec 8 to develop proposals for how the GoC will adopt and enforce these sanctions and how police and customs officials will be directed to carry out enforcement. Once the GoC adopts the recommendation of the Working Group, according to Juraga, the sanctions will be published in Croatia's National Gazette (equivalent of the U.S. Federal Register). Regarding UNSCR 1718 sanctions on luxury goods, Juraga noted that the Working Group would consider whether the GoC should create its own luxury goods list or adopt either the USG or EU list. 3.(SBU) COMMENT: This process represents an important step forward in the institutionalization of Croatian implementation of international trade sanctions, something that has been done only in a haphazard way in the past. Currently, violators of these upcoming sanctions will be punished under Croatian legal provisions against economic crime and illegal trade - essentially low-penalty customs violations. Post is assisting the GoC in drafting revisions to its export control legislation which will allow more stringent enforcement of both international sanctions and Croatia's export control regime. END COMMENT BRADTKE