Asia Pacific
15:18, 18-May-2019
DPRK demands UN action over ship seizure by 'gangster' U.S.
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The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has asked United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to deal with the "illegal" seizure of one of its cargo ships by the United States, the country's state media said on Saturday.
"This act of dispossession has clearly indicated that the United States is indeed a gangster country that does not care at all about international laws," the DPRK ambassador to the UN said in a letter sent to Guterres dated Friday, according to DPRK's KCNA news agency.
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Last Thursday, the United States for the first time seized a DPRK's cargo ship it accused of illicit coal shipments in violation of U.S. and United Nations sanctions. The DPRK condemned the U.S. seizure of its ship directly violates the June 12 summit agreement, urged the U.S. to return the vessel, adding that the DPRK will keep a sharp eye on U.S. behavior going forward.
Pyongyang's protest comes amid mounting tensions since a second summit between DPRK leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump, aimed at bringing about the denuclearization of the DPRK, broke down in Hanoi in February.
The letter also called for "urgent measures" by Guterres and claimed that Washington infringed DPRK's sovereignty and violated the UN charters.
The DPRK has said the ship seizure violated the spirit of the summit and demanded the return of the vessel without delay.
The U.S. Justice Department said the DPRK cargo ship, known as the "Wise Honest", was seized and impounded to American Samoa. The vessel was first detained by Indonesia in April 2018.
(With inputs from Reuters)