UN allows DPRK delegation to travel to Vietnam for Trump-Kim meeting

World
Europe

A UN Security Council sanctions committee has agreed to allow Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader Kim Jong Un's delegation to travel to Vietnam for a summit meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, diplomats said on Wednesday.

Vietnam had asked the committee to grant an exemption to senior DPRK officials who are on a UN sanctions blacklist to allow them to attend the February 27-28 summit in Hanoi.

The sanctions provide for a global travel ban that bars governments from granting them visas to come into their countries.

UN diplomats said Vietnam had requested a blanket exemption for the DPRK officials and that none of the 15 Security Council members had objected.

The committee also granted exemptions to allow the delegation to attend the U.S.-DPRK summit in Singapore in June.

U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with DPRK leader Kim Jong Un at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore, June 12, 2018. /VCG Photo

Trump and Kim are due to meet in Hanoi next week to try to achieve progress on scrapping the DPRK's nuclear and ballistic missiles programs.

In Washington, Trump said Kim must make a "meaningful" gesture on denuclearization if he wants UN sanctions to be eased.

Led by the U.S., the Security Council has adopted a raft of sanctions resolutions that ban sales of DPRK imports such as coal and severely restrict oil supplies to the country.

The U.S. has insisted that "maximum pressure" from sanctions must remain in place until Pyongyang has fully scrapped its nuclear and ballistic missiles programs.

(Cover: U.S. President Donald Trump walks with DPRK leader Kim Jong Un during a break in talks at their historic summit, at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore, June 12, 2018. /VCG Photo)

Source(s): AFP