DPRK: 1718 COMMITTEE PLEDGES SUPPORT TO PANEL OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 000990 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/17/2019 TAGS: PREL PHUM ETTC MCAP KN UNSC SUBJECT: DPRK: 1718 COMMITTEE PLEDGES SUPPORT TO PANEL OF EXPERTS Classified By: Amb. Alejandro Wolff for Reasons 1.4 (B),(D) ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The Security Council's DPRK Sanctions Committee ("1718 Committee") met on October 30 with the newly-established Panel of Experts (POE),a team of UN contractors mandated with helping monitor and improve UN sanctions imposed on North Korea. POE members introduced themselves and pledged to work closely with the Committee. The POE coordinator noted that one expert (Chinese) has yet to arrive in New York. Committee members, including Russia and China, offered strong words of support. The P-3 and Japan pointed to North Korea's recent launches of short-range ballistic missiles as reason for the Committee to redouble its efforts. The Committee chair noted that the Committee will aim to complete by November 30 a delayed assessment of reports received from Member States regarding their implementation of UNSCR 1874. The chair also noted, without discussion, the Committee's ongoing review of letters from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Republic of Korea (ROK) reporting alleged sanctions violations. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) On October 30, the UN Security Council's DPRK Sanctions Committee ("1718 Committee") met with the Panel of Experts (POE),a team of UN contractors mandated in UNSCR 1874 to help monitor and improve the implementation of UN sanctions imposed on North Korea. The Committee chair, Turkish Perm Rep Apakan, welcomed David Birch, the UK coordinator of the seven-person team. The U.S., UK, French, Japanese, South Korean and Russian experts introduced themselves to the Committee. Birch noted, however, that one POE member, the Chinese expert, has yet to arrive in New York. Birch pledged to work closely with the Committee to advance the full implementation of UNSCRs 1718 and 1874. ¶3. (SBU) The Chinese delegate welcomed the POE and apologized for the delay in the Chinese expert's arrival. The Russian delegate also welcomed the POE and expressed a hope that the POE would "be under the leadership of the Committee" and carry out "all the tasks set forth by the Committee." The Austrian delegate said he believed the POE would strengthen the Committee's capacity and encouraged the group to share information for the benefit of all Committee members. ¶4. (SBU) USUN Sanctions Unit chief noted the DPRK's recent launch of short-range ballistic missiles, which he said served as a reminder of the need to implement fully UNSCRs 1718 and 1874. He encouraged the POE to carry out its mission robustly and to produce detailed reports for the Council with recommendations for action. USUN also encouraged the POE to devote attention to its mandate to examine specific incidents of non-compliance, noting that the Committee had recently received two reports documenting sanctions violations that need to be investigated. ¶5. (SBU) The Japanese delegate also noted the October launches of short-range ballistic missiles in violation of UNSCR 1874. These launches, he said, illustrated the need to ensure full implementation of the relevant resolutions. Referring to reports received from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Republic of Korea (ROK) of sanctions violations, he asserted that the POE's expertise would help the Committee deal with these incidents and similar ones in the future. The UK delegate also referred to the short-range ballistic missile launches as cause for concern and urged the Committee to make progress on its program of work. The French delegate told the POE that it could count on the Committee's full support and also cited the missile launches. OTHER ISSUES: PROGRAM OF WORK, IMPLEMENTATION -------------- ¶6. (SBU) The chair noted that the Committee's program of work had envisioned the Committee completing, with the support of the POE, a comprehensive assessment by October 1 of Member State reports on their implementation of UNSCR ¶1874. UNSCR 1874, he noted, had asked states to submit these reports within forty-five days of the resolution's June 12 adoption (i.e., by July 27). Due to delays in the POE's establishment, the chair noted, this assessment had been delayed, but should be completed by November 30. (NOTE: As of November 2, only 43 Member States had submitted an implementation report.) ¶7. (C) The chair also noted that the Committee was still reviewing two reports to the 1718 Committee about alleged sanctions violations: the incident reported in August by the UAE and the one reported in October by the ROK. The Chinese delegate informed the Committee that China had recently completed an investigation into its role in the UAE-reported sanctions violation in which the shipping company involved was believed to be based in Shanghai. He pledged to share with the Committee the results of this investigation in the coming days. The Committee did not discuss these incidents further. (NOTE: The P-3 and Japan had encouraged the chair not to lead a lengthy Committee debate on these incidents. We assess that it would be more useful to hold behind-the-scenes deliberations, particularly with Libya and Russia who have questioned whether the ROK-reported find of chemical protective suits actually constituted a violation of the arms embargo in UNSCR 1874. END NOTE.) ¶8. (SBU) The chair explained that he would convene another Committee meeting within two weeks to review the POE interim report, which is due to the Security Council on November 12. Rice