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| Seen above is the inter-Korean liaison office in Gaeseong, North Korea. / Yonhap |
By Lee Min-hyung
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has taken issue with South Korea's failure to notify the council of the country's shipments of petroleum products to North Korea last year for the establishment of the inter-Korean liaison office there.
According to an annual report by the United Nations Panel of Experts, Tuesday, all United Nations member countries should report to the UNSC any shipments of refined petroleum products to the North, but the South did not send the notification.
This was in contrast to the South Korean government's earlier stance that the case had nothing to do with any violation of international sanctions on the North, as the shipment was aimed at the special purpose of building the office and the U.S. also understood the intention.
But the panel expressed different views on the issue, saying that any member states should notify "any transfer of refined petroleum products to the North."
"The panel notes that the specific language of paragraph 5 of resolution 2397 requiring member states to notify the UNSC Sanctions Committee on North Korea of any transfer to North Korea of refined petroleum products is by territory as opposed to possession and does not differentiate between temporary and permanent transfers, or under whose control the items will be after transfer," said the report published Tuesday.
Last year, the South Korean government argued that it had closely discussed the matter with the U.N. and the United States while carrying out the project.
Last August, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said the case had nothing to do with a violation of the U.N. sanctions on the North, as the petroleum transfer was not aimed at giving economic benefits to the regime. She also said the government continued to exchange its views with the U.S. over the issue.
Even if the report did not state that South Korea violated U.N. sanctions on North Korea, the latest message by the panel is seen as a warning sign to the South that the country should remain more careful when pushing ahead with any inter-Korean projects.
The panel also noted that it sent a letter to the South regarding August media reports on the transfer of petroleum products to the North for the opening of the liaison office.
"South Korea explained that 'among 338,737 kilograms of petroleum products used for the implementation of the joint projects from January 2018 to November 2018, 4,039 kilograms were unused and brought back to the South,'" said the report.
At that time, the South underlined that the country used the petroleum products "exclusively for the implementation of the projects, while ensuring that no transfer of economic values to the North occurs," according to the report.
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