Sweden Explains It All: EU North Korea Sanctions

The historical background:

The basis for the sanctions against North Korea is that, in contravention of international agreements, the country has developed nuclear weapons and conducted nuclear tests.

In the last 20 years, North Korea's relations with the international community in the nuclear field have fluctuated between a willingness to cooperate and a display of aloofness on the part of North Korea. In August 2003, six-party talks were initiated aimed at resolving the complicated situation that had arisen after North Korea refused to continue cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In addition to North and South Korea, this forum includes China, the United States, Japan and Russia. The 2005 round of negotiations concluded with a joint statement on 19 September, which established the goal of a nuclear-free Korean peninsula. North Korea pledged to abstain from all nuclear weapons and ongoing nuclear programmes, to return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and resume cooperation with the IAEA.

However, in July 2006, North Korea tested a long-range missile and six medium and short range missiles. The UN Security Council then adopted Resolution 1695, and a blockade was announced concerning the supply of funds and military equipment that could contribute to North Korea developing weapons of mass destruction. In October 2006, North Korea announced that for the first time, it had tested a nuclear explosive device, a claim confirmed by international verification measures. The action was condemned, and the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1718 with even more far-reaching sanctions against North Korea. The sanctions have been jointly implemented by EU Member States.

After pressure by the Chinese, North Korea returned to the suspended six-party talks in December 2006. Bilateral meetings with the US were also held alongside the talks. On 13 February 2007, an agreement was reached on measures to implement the joint statement from September 2005. The agreement involves a timetable for reporting on and dismantling North Korea's nuclear programme in exchange for pledges on cooperation and aid from the other countries. This was followed by over one year of positive developments, but then the process again reached a standstill.

In April 2009, North Korea launched a ballistic missile, which was strongly criticised by countries around the world and by the Security Council. North Korea claimed that it had launched a satellite. As a result of the controversy caused by the launch, North Korea left the six-party talks. In May, North Korea announced that it had conducted a new nuclear test. The test was condemned by the Security Council and led to Resolution1874 on broader sanctions against North Korea. The EU's decision on implementing the sanctions means that, to a certain extent, they have been broadened. Examples of this are a significant increase in the number of products prohibited from being exported to North Korea, and the EU having independently taken decisions on listing people and entities subject to freezing of assets in addition to those decided by the UN.

What the sanctions entail:

1. Arms embargo (exports and imports) and prohibition against certain related services

It is prohibited to directly or indirectly provide North Korea with arms and related materiel of all types. The arms embargo also includes related services, which means that it is prohibited to provide technical and financial services related to such materiel or technology.

It is also prohibited to purchase or otherwise take delivery of this type of materiel or technology from North Korea, as well as related technical and financial services.

A corresponding prohibition regarding exports, imports and other similar matters applies to dual-use products that can be used for military activities, and to related services (see also point 2).

2. Prohibition against exporting and importing dual-use products

It is prohibited to directly or indirectly provide North Korea with products, equipment and technology that can be used by the country's nuclear or missile technology programmes, or other programmes linked to weapons of mass destruction.

Similarly, it is prohibited to purchase or otherwise take delivery of these products from North Korea.

The sanctions also cover related services, which means that it is prohibited to provide or take delivery of technical and financial services related to these products.

The products covered by this prohibition, as well as the prohibition regarding an arms embargo stated in the last paragraph of point 1, are determined by the EU's standardised list of dual-use products. This can be found in the annex to the Dual-Use Regulation (Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009). The list includes products associated with nuclear weapons, missile technology, chemical and bacteriological weapons, and also products mainly associated with conventional weapons. This list contains both products that the UN has decided to impose sanctions on and those that the EU has independently decided to include in the sanctions against North Korea. In addition to this list, the EU has adopted prohibitions that specifically target North Korea regarding an additional number of dual-use products and related services, which are contained on a special list. To access these and other documents, please refer to the heading “Relevant EU documents”.

3. Prohibition against exporting luxury goods

It is prohibited to directly or indirectly sell, deliver, transfer or export luxury goods to North Korea. The EU has specified the types of goods covered, which are included on a special list (see below under “Relevant EU documents”).

4. Travel restrictions

Travel restrictions are in place in the form of prohibitions against entry and transit for persons that the Security Council or the EU considers to have a particular connection to activities that the Security Council wishes to prevent. These are listed in two annexes (see below under “Relevant EU documents”). Certain exemptions may be granted.

5. Freezing of assets

The sanctions also mean that assets and economic resources belonging to certain designated persons, entities or bodies that participate in or support the North Korean programmes that the Security Council wishes to prevent are to be frozen. Some of these have been specified by the Security Council and some independently by the EU. It is also prohibited for others to make assets or economic resources available to them. There are two separate lists that specify who these people and entities are (see below under “Relevant EU documents”). Under certain circumstances, exemptions from freezing can be granted, for example for assets or economic resources that are necessary to satisfy basic needs.

6. Training restrictions

Measures are to be taken to prevent specialised teaching or training of North Korean nationals in disciplines that would contribute to North Korea's proliferation-sensitive nuclear activities or development of nuclear weapon delivery systems. This may pertain to training and research cooperation with North Korea, and affect the opportunities for North Koreans to take part in such higher education courses in Sweden.

7. Ban on government grants, financial assistance and concessional loans, and on export support in connection with proliferation sensitive activities

States may not make new pledges concerning grants, financial assistance or concessional loans to North Korea except for humanitarian or developmental purposes that are directly relevant to the needs of the civilian population or the promotion of nuclear disarmament. Furthermore, export support may not be provided if it could contribute to activities or programmes in North Korea that are related to nuclear or missile technology, or other weapons of mass destruction.

8. Increased monitoring of transactions with North Korean credit and financial institutions

In order to prevent the provision of financial support or the transfer of funds or resources that could contribute to North Korea's programmes and activities related to nuclear or missile technology, or other weapons of mass destruction, special requirements on vigilance have been introduced regarding transactions with North Korean credit and financial institutions both within and outside North Korea. This monitoring is to be exercised by banks and other financial institutions within the EU according to specific requirements. Any suspicions that proliferation-sensitive activities may be involved are to be reported to the Financial Intelligence Unit. A list has been prepared of the credit and financial institutions owned and controlled by North Korea that are to be subject to monitoring.

9. Increased monitoring of cargo to and from North Korea

Regulations have been introduced concerning inspections of cargoes to and from North Korea aimed at preventing the transfer of products and technologies that are prohibited from being exported to that country. All cargo to and from North Korea is to be inspected at seaports and airports in the EU if there are reasonable suspicions that it contains products that are prohibited with regard to that country. Vessels and aircraft with cargo to and from North Korea must also provide advance information on all cargo to customs authorities. Even cargo in international waters may be subject to inspection if the flag State gives its consent. There are rules concerning the seizure and disposal of prohibited products. It is prohibited to provide bunkering services to ships suspected of carrying prohibited products, unless provision of such services is necessary for humanitarian purposes.

And here are the relevant EU decisions:

The EU has implemented the restrictive measures against North Korea decided by the UN by adopting various legal acts – Council decisions (previously known as common positions) and regulations. In some cases, EU Member States have agreed on clarifying or tightening the measures adopted by the UN in these legal acts. When Council decisions are adopted by the Council of the European Union in the intergovernmental cooperation for a common foreign and security policy they, like the United Nations Security Council resolutions, become binding for Sweden. Measures that fall under the competence of the Member States are further regulated in national legislation. For example, regarding the arms embargo, this would be Swedish military equipment legislation. Special national legislation prohibits the import of arms, etc. which were not already regulated by Swedish law. Measures that fall under the competence of the EU are instead regulated by EU regulations, which are directly applicable and legally binding in Sweden.

The sanctions against North Korea are now collected in Council Decision 2010/800/CFSP, which replaces a common position from 2006 and its subsequent amendments.

The categories of the sanctions against North Korea pertaining to EU law are laid out in a basic regulation from the Council of the European Union, Council Regulation (EC) No 329/2007. This provides certain definitions and regulates prohibitions with regard to dual-use products and certain associated services, the arms embargo and the freezing of assets. This regulation also contains a list of the luxury goods that are prohibited to provide to North Korea. A list of the dual-use products prohibited for export and import in accordance with UN decisions first appeared in a regulation by the European Commission in 2007, which was added to the content of Annex 1 of the Council Regulation, but this list has now lost its significance since the EU established other principles for the prohibition in 2009. New arrangements took effect through Council Regulation (EU) No 1283/2009 in December 2009, which introduced amendments and supplements to Council Regulation (EC) No 329/2007 on a whole range of points. Under Council Regulation (EU) No 1283/2009, the prohibition is to cover the EU's standardised list of dual-use products in accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009 as well as dual-use products selected by the EU in addition to the standard list and listed in Annex 1 A. Similar arrangements were introduced for the prohibition on certain associated services. In 2010, certain additions were made to Annex 1 A and are contained in the latest version, Council Regulation (EU) No 567/2010. The persons and entities covered by the EU's own decisions on the freezing of assets are now listed in the annex to Commission Regulation (EU) No 1251/2010.

Council Regulation (EU) No 1283/2009 also regulates in detail the extended surveillance regime with regard to transport and the prohibition on bunkering, as well as the surveillance regime in relation to finance and credit institutions. The latter will be supplemented with an annex listing the banks connected to North Korea that are covered. The regulations on the freezing of assets were also reformulated in view of the fact that the EU can independently decide on such issues alongside UN decisions.

Through Council Decision 2011/860/CFSP and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 1355/2011, the EU has implemented certain UN supplements to the lists of those subject to travel restrictions and freezing of assets.

Because of the legislative technique used by the EU, with repeated amendments and supplements of earlier legal acts, the regulations must be read together and sometimes in parallel.

The prohibition on the import, etc. of arms and related materiel has been introduced in Swedish law via the Ordinance on certain sanctions against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (2011:67).

Link:

Sweden EU North Korea sanctions page

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