Ha Tae-kyung: "Moon Administration Violated North Korea Sanctions Obligations for 5 Years... Did Not Freeze Kyungmoon Association Assets"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] It has been revealed that the assets of North Korea's 'Propaganda and Agitation Department,' which is subject to UN Security Council sanctions, have not been frozen over the past five years.

On the 4th, Ha Tae-kyung, a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee from the People Power Party, stated, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has acknowledged that 'the copyright fees for Korean Central TV appear to be subject to UN asset freezes, but no measures have been taken during the five years of the Moon Jae-in administration since the adoption of the resolution in December 2017,'" revealing this fact.

The UN Security Council previously adopted Resolution 2375 on December 22, 2017, strengthening sanctions against North Korea in response to its sixth nuclear test, explicitly naming the Propaganda and Agitation Department of the Workers' Party of Korea as a target of sanctions. Notably, the sanctions apply not only to the Propaganda and Agitation Department itself but also to any subordinate or affiliated organizations under its direction.

The agency responsible for collecting copyright fees paid to North Korea by general programming and news channels is the South-North Economic and Cultural Cooperation Foundation (hereafter Gyeongmunhyeop). A significant portion of the 2 billion won in copyright fees they hold belongs to organizations under the Propaganda and Agitation Department, such as Korean Central TV, which are subject to UN sanctions. Representative Ha pointed out, "When designated as a UN sanctions target, our government is obliged to freeze the assets of the relevant organizations within the country and report this to the UN Sanctions Committee on North Korea," adding, "The Republic of Korea government has failed to fulfill its UN Security Council sanctions obligations against North Korea."

He further stated, "It is a serious diplomatic issue that our government, a key party to the North Korean nuclear issue, has not implemented UN sanctions against North Korea," and urged, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs must thoroughly investigate the cause of this loophole in sanctions and promptly take measures to faithfully implement UN sanctions going forward."

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