On June 12, Voice of America (VOA) reported that New Zealand Defense Forces detected four ship-to-ship transfers in its maritime surveillance activities against North Korean sanctions and reported 30 suspicious vessels. This marks the sixth time the New Zealand Defense Forces have participated in these surveillance activities. Analysts suggest that North Korea’s evasion of sanctions is becoming more sophisticated.
According to VOA, the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) conducted surveillance activities against violations of the UN Security Council’s sanctions on North Korea using the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft from April to May. On June 11, the New Zealand Defense Forces announced, “During 11 missions and 88 hours of flight, a total of four cases of ship-to-ship transfers and 30 vessels of interest were observed. An additional 33 vessels suspected of violating UN Security Council resolutions were reported.”
Wing Commander of the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s 5th Squadron Mark Whiteside led this operation and pointed out, “Those trying to evade UN sanctions are using various tactics to hide their activities. We observed ships transferring potentially banned items such as oil and coal from ship to ship, which is a key factor enabling North Korea to continue its weapons program.”
In response to North Korea’s sixth nuclear test in 2017, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2375, which prohibits North Korean-representing vessels from trading any goods. To implement the resolution, the United States, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand have been conducting maritime surveillance activities against illegal transfers by North Korean vessels by dispatching aircraft or warships near the Korean Peninsula.
The New Zealand Defense Forces have been deploying personnel and maritime surveillance aircraft since 2018 to support the implementation of the UN Security Council’s sanctions against North Korea. The New Zealand Air Force retired the P-3K2 Orion maritime patrol aircraft that it had been using for missions and introduced the multi-purpose maritime patrol reconnaissance aircraft Poseidon for this surveillance activity. This is the first time Poseidon has participated in overseas operations.
The Dutch Naval Air Defense Frigate HNLMS Tromp also joined in this UN Security Council surveillance activity for the first time to implement sanctions against North Korea. On June 10, the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced, “From the end of May to the beginning of June, the Dutch frigate HNLMS Tromp conducted surveillance activities against illegal maritime activities, including ship-to-ship transfers with North Korean cargo ships prohibited by the UN Security Council resolution near Japan’s coastal areas.”