Just days after we showed satellite images which indicated that Chinese ships were trading oil with North Korean ships in a blatant violation of UN Security Council sanctions, South Korea said Friday that it was holding a Hong Kong flagged ship suspected of doing just that.
The Lighthouse Winmore is believed to have "secretly transferred" about 600 tons of refined petroleum products to the North Korean ship, the Sam Jong 2, in international waters in the East China Sea on Oct. 19, according to Bloomberg and the Associated Press.
The Hong Kong vessel had previously visited Yeosu port on Oct. 11 to load up on Japanese oil products and departed the port while claiming its destination was Taiwan. Instead, it transferred the oil to the Sam Jong 2 and three other non-North Korean vessels in international waters
The vessel was chartered by Taiwanese company Billions Bunker Group, which is incorporated in the Marshall Islands. According to Bloomberg, Taiwanese investigators are looking into whether any Taiwanese nationals have ties to the ship that was seized on Friday, Taiwan’s Maritime and Port Bureau says in statement on its website.
Photos from US recon satellites released earlier this week showed at least 30 illegal transactions involving Chinese vessels selling oil to North Korea on the West Sea in October. The images allegedly showed large Chinese and North Korean ships transacting in oil in a part of the West Sea closer to China than South Korea. The satellite pictures were so clear, they even showed the names of the ships.
Amusingly, Beijing on Thursday said there was no illicit trade, with defense ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang denying everything and claiming that China and its military strictly enforced the UN resolutions on North Korea.
"The situation you have mentioned absolutely does not exist," Ren said at a regular media briefing, without elaborating.
According to Chinese customs data, the country did not export any oil products to North Korea in November.
South Korean customs authorities boarded the ship and interviewed crew members after they returned to Yeosu on Nov. 24. South Korea formally seized the ship after the UN Security Council on Dec. 22 imposed new sanctions on North Korea that allow member states to seize, inspect and freeze vessels that are suspected of transferring banned goods to or from North Korea, the official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity, citing office rules.
The ship’s 25 crew members - 23 of them Chinese nationals and two from Myanmar - are being held at Yeosu but will be allowed to leave South Korea after authorities are finished investigating them, the official said. South Korea plans to report the results of its inspection to the UN Security Council’s sanctions committee.
Whether the Sam Jong 2 returned to North Korea after receiving the oil could not be confirmed.
* * *
The Treasury Department last month sanctioned six North Korean shipping and trading companies and 20 of their vessels. The North Korean ship seen accepting oil transfers in the photos released by the Treasury Department was identified as the Rye Song Gang 1.
Ship-to-ship trade with North Korea at sea is prohibited under the round of UN sanctions adopted on Sept. 11. A subsequent round of sanctions aimed at restricting the North Korean energy trade was passed earlier this month.
President Donald Trump criticized China in a tweet published last night:
Caught RED HANDED - very disappointed that China is allowing oil to go into North Korea. There will never be a friendly solution to the North Korea problem if this continues to happen!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 28, 2017
China is responsible for more than 90% of North Korea’s foreign trade and oil supplies.
Comments
More pirates afoot
"Billions Bunker Group"
classic
In reply to More pirates afoot by cossack55
State-sponsored piracy… ;-)
Looney
In reply to "Billions Bunker Group"… by BKbroiler
More like war crimes against North Korea. Starving the population is prohibited by the Red Cross and the Geneva Convention. But when did that ever stop the heebs. After all, they firebombed civilians in 4 waves in Hamburg and Dresden and starved Germany with multiple illegal blockades enforced by a "neutral" USA.
Of course, fomenting and waging aggressive war is the worst crime of all, and Roosevelt did it to Germany and Japan.
In reply to … by Looney
+1 for the "starving the population" reminder
(and never mind that the Red Cross can't forbid anything)
the "Geneva Convention" part is a bit more complex. strictly speaking only some relatively recent amendments forbid starving your own population (you have first to even contemplate/witness such a madness) (NK did not sign/ratify them) and the US did also not sign/ratify several related to the firebombing of Dresden and similar things
here: List of International Treaties unsigned or unratified by the USA (see 1977)
In reply to More like war crimes against… by ConfederateH
The Lighthouse Winmore, leased by a Taiwan company, loaded refined oil in a port in South Korea?
Then transferred the oil to NK ships in international waters which then took it to NK?
If so, what was China's role?
In reply to +1 for the "starving the… by Ghordius
Don't look at the details! If you tug on any of the loose threads the whole garment will fall apart. The benevolent overlords told you what to think, so you just need to go shopping and leave all the hard stuff to them, m'kay?
In reply to The Lighthouse Winmore,… by two hoots
Remember when the US used Navy Seals to take over oil tankers leaving Libya a couple of years ago?
Where did they ever go?
Clinton Foundation Navy maybe.
In reply to Don't look at the details!… by dirty fingernails
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In reply to Remember when the US used… by BeansMcGreens
When I look at that list of treaties I would say that nearly half are just blatant sovereignty grabs for some virtue signaling bullshit. The people who write these treaties are all owned or are members of a very special cabal.
In reply to +1 for the "starving the… by Ghordius
You need to go back and learn "real" history.
In reply to More like war crimes against… by ConfederateH
UN sanctions are serious business.
In reply to You need to go back and… by OCnStiggs
No evidence of any starvation going on.
In reply to More like war crimes against… by ConfederateH
Hunger in North Korea Is Devastating. And It’s Our Fault.
In reply to No evidence of any… by css1971
Kinda like Hollywood. Make shit up to add to the Drama.
In reply to No evidence of any… by css1971
We'll see how the moving of the US embassy to jeruslum goes after 129 countries voted against it.
"illegal blockades" This was also done to Japan. The 1941 oil embargo and assets-freezing order against Japan, made war with Japan inevitable.
In reply to More like war crimes against… by ConfederateH
I wonder if they'll get headaches & brain damage from the Israeli "crickets"....
In reply to We'll see how the moving of… by Justin Case
The US Army Air Forces was not exactly neutral during that Dresden kerfuffle.
In reply to More like war crimes against… by ConfederateH
Is truth allowed in the land of freedom??
In reply to The US Army Air Forces was… by Akzed
But it was China that was doing it!!! The US gov saw them.
Will South Korea hold their own ships? Or do they get to slip past the Hong Kong ones?
Money to be made on the high seas! If you have the right connections!!
In reply to … by Looney
"Arrr, matey."
In reply to But it was China that was… by MozartIII
Hey, hall-monitor, your little creepy buddies can have their little ship back if they ask nicely. Tisk tisk ...
In reply to … by Looney
I'm amazed that the US was able to uncover this oil piracy ?
The Isis oil piracy that helped fund the organization took place for years right under the nose of US drone surveillance until Russia finally put a stop to it.
In reply to "Billions Bunker Group"… by BKbroiler
The Isis oil piracy that helped fund the organization took place for years right under the nose of US drone surveillance
You are assuming that the Obama Administration actually desired to stop it. Bad assumption.
In reply to I'm amazed that the US was… by curbjob
Once upon a time /s was considered redundant here.
In reply to The Isis oil piracy that… by Ghost of PartysOver
They bugged the entire world and can monitor all their internet traffic.
They had this satellite technology and have been tracking enemies for years.
What's amazing isn't how the US uncovered it, it's how Americans continue to believe their lies...
In reply to I'm amazed that the US was… by curbjob
ISIS oil piracy? which one? that of Turkey? or that of Syria? or the other three?
the first was of an ally. close your eyes
the second was between enemies (!). to which Russians closed their eyes
and so on. that's what you get when 17 factions scramble and scratch for the same turf: an unholy mess devoid of sense... on top of a war
In reply to I'm amazed that the US was… by curbjob
the ("unobserved") MH17 downing also comes to mind.
In reply to I'm amazed that the US was… by curbjob
Guess they never did find the traffic controller that witnessed it on radar and broad casted it?
In reply to the ("unobserved") MH17… by rwe2late
You amazed that Obama ... um ... really? You seriously equate that criminal admin to the “US”?
In reply to I'm amazed that the US was… by curbjob
Meet the new boss, same as the old boss
In reply to You amazed that Obama ... um… by null
"Who really controls NK"?
-- Q
In reply to More pirates afoot by cossack55
"Who really controls China?"
-- F_P
In reply to "Who really controls NK"?… by Ralph Spoilsport
"The future proves the past."
Say, unless I missed it, we sure would enjoy a Q Anon thread Tylerinos.
In reply to "Who really controls NK"?… by Ralph Spoilsport
Like a fighting-dog, nobody controls.
But China “owns” them ... and is afraid to get bitten, smart.
In reply to "Who really controls NK"?… by Ralph Spoilsport
The grandkids.
In reply to "Who really controls NK"?… by Ralph Spoilsport
is China now responsible for Taiwan? I think they would like to be.
In reply to More pirates afoot by cossack55
Apparently the prices were better in international waters than at the port where the ship was said to be bound, and with less transportation costs.
In reply to is China now responsible for… by wildbad
They are responsible for their actions VIA Taiwan, if any.
In reply to is China now responsible for… by wildbad
China's "responsible" in the same way that China is
"responsible" for what NK does,
but with even less ability to enforce anything against Taiwan.
[because the US says China is "responsible", it must be true -sarc]
It is great to be the judge of who is "responsible".
The US accordingly judges itself to be not "responsible" for
Afghan/CIA drugs or Saudi/terrorism or civilian/"collateral damage".
In reply to is China now responsible for… by wildbad
For TMSC, if for no other reason.
He who controls the silicon, controls the world?
In reply to is China now responsible for… by wildbad
More reasons to not bomb anything.
In reply to More pirates afoot by cossack55
Diplomacy my ass. Can't negotiate with Chinese policy makers. Those guys do what they want, all we can do is follow their example. America First! Forget the globalists, the UN that can't even organize a spaghetti dinner anymore, forget all these institutions that want sovereign nations to hand over their power so we de facto lose the right to vote.
ok. now... how does that work? never mind if it's a good idea or not. just this:
what exactly are you proposing?
start with trade: no trade with China? no trade with anybody?
consider this: if you produce something and you export it to let's say Japan, which court is responsible for any legal matter? that's exactly where all that diplomacy/treaty stuff starts, mind
further: ships. no American flag vessels in foreign harbours anymore? or... a treaty?
my point is that the approach you are using opens endless questions about how
and... it was previous answers that produced all those entities and treaties. which are all about details, details and more details
In reply to Diplomacy my ass. Can't… by vollderlerby
Individual contract clauses. Nations managed to trade before the WTO. Trade agreements have not stopped IP theft. Trade is fine, but not with enemies.
In reply to ok. now... how does that… by Ghordius
Spaghetti is racist.
In reply to Diplomacy my ass. Can't… by vollderlerby
....and tasty.... 🙄
In reply to Spaghetti is racist. by Akzed
You are (to put it mildly) ill-informed.
The US government is renowned for keeping its word,
from treaties with Native Americans,
to pledges to Russia about expanding NATO.
And, of course, US corporations are never violate anything.
In reply to Diplomacy my ass. Can't… by vollderlerby
thats only 4000 barrels. wtf...
We danced until the night turned to dawn.
Pagination