South Korea Imposes Sanctions on Non-Flagged Vessel for Transporting North Korean Iron Ore

The government of South Korea has imposed sanctions on a non-flagged vessel the country seized for illegally transporting iron ore produced in North Korea.

Sanctions were also imposed on two Chinese nationals, Sun Zhengzhe and Sun Feng, who operated the ship, and Russian company LLC Consul DV, which was the cosignee of the cargo. The unilateral sanctions will take effect within a week.

The vessel, Sunrise 1, currently under detention in South Korean territorial waters, has been ordered to leave the country. It has been detained by authorities for over nine months.

The ship is a stateless vessel operated by Hong Kong-based Xiangrui Shipping. Its name was changed from Gain Star in May last year, about a month before picking up 5,020 tonnes of ore from North Korea’s Chongjin Port. Name changes are a frequent tactic to evade sanctions.

A joint press release by the South Korean Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Financial Services Commission, and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries stated that an investigation found that the vessel was implicated in violating UN Security Council Resolution 2371, which prohibits the transfer of North Korean iron ore.

The South Korean government stated that the sanctions were used as a deterrent for committing similar illicit actions and as a way to disrupt North Korea’s “illicit financing and procurement networks”.