Politics
10:10, 17-Jan-2018
Participants of Vancouver meeting back further diplomatic action against DPRK
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The participants in a conference aimed at curbing the nuclear ambitions of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) have agreed to consider unilateral sanctions and further diplomatic actions beyond the resolutions of the United Nations, according to a statement on Tuesday.
Foreign ministers from 20 countries attended the two-day meeting in Vancouver, which was co-hosted by Canada and the United States.
China and Russia, which border the DPRK and wield veto power on the UN Security Council, were absent.
The US and the 19 other countries, all of which are its closest allies, agreed on tougher "maritime interdiction" to prevent the DPRK from evading nuclear sanctions through smuggling, according to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
Tillerson said the allies do not want to interfere with legitimate shipping but warned that action must be taken to stop sanctions-busting "ship-to-ship" transfers at sea.
Moscow has previously called the meeting “destructive” while China voiced its opposition to the “Cold War approaches” used by some relevant parties.
"While countries are committed to finding a proper solution for the peaceful settlement of the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, some parties hold such a meeting in the name of the so-called United Nations command during the Cold War era," spokesperson for Chinese Foreign Ministry Lu Kang said earlier on Tuesday.
(With input from AFP)
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