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US and South Korea create task force to prevent North Korea from buying illegal oil from Russia

According to the more than 30 officials who participated in the meeting, this fuel "is an essential resource for North Korea’s nuclear and missile development and military posture."

Kim Jong Un, líder supremo de Corea del Norte,

Kim Jong-un (Cordon Press)

Published by
Rosana Rábago Sainz

The United States and South Korea met Tuesday to try to stop North Korea from buying illegal oil from Russia. To do this, they created the Enhanced Disruption Task Force (EDTF), in which more than 30 intelligence and maritime interdiction officials met with a common objective: to prevent the country led by Kim Jong-un from gaining more military power.

Both nations issued a statement, which was reported by Breitbart, expressing concern about the possible collaboration of Russia and North Korea and debated the best mechanisms to prevent Pyongyang from illegally purchasing oil from Putin:

The two sides discussed how DPRK imports of refined petroleum in excess of the U.N.-mandated cap violate U.N. Security Council resolutions and support the DPRK’s unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs

This could give more international power to Pyongyang, as detailed by the Enhanced Disruption Task Force: "Oil is an essential resource for North Korea’s nuclear and missile development and military posture," assured the EDTF.

Possible sanctions that the US and South Korea could apply against North Korea

For that reason, the Enhanced Disruption Task Force will be able to implement different sanctions against North Korea, which the U.S. State Department detailed in the following statement:

Through EDTF, the United States and ROK are pursuing a wide range of joint actions to disrupt DPRK refined oil procurement networks, including by exposing DPRK sanctions evasion activities, reviewing options for autonomous sanctions designations, and engaging private sector and third-party actors throughout the region who facilitate – either knowingly or unwittingly – the DPRK’s oil procurement networks. The EDTF also discussed future areas of focus, including disrupting the DPRK’s illicit overseas coal sales.
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