This week, Russia used its veto power to block the yearly renewal of a group of experts responsible for overseeing the adherence to UN sanctions against North Korea for its nuclear and missile activities.
Thirteen members of the United Nations Security Council supported the extension of the group's authority for another year, while China chose not to vote.
North Korea has been facing sanctions for its missile and nuclear projects since 2006, and the voting outcome does not change the sanctions themselves.
The group, consisting of independent specialists, has been conducting supervision for 15 years, submitting reports to the Security Council twice annually. The specialists also offer suggestions on how to improve the implementation of measures.
Russia's veto came amidst allegations that North Korea had transferred arms to Russia for use in its invasion of Ukraine. Both Russia and North Korea have denied these claims.
South Korea's representative at the UN, Joonkook Hwang criticized the result of the voting.
“This is outrageous and illogical, given the continual and accelerated progress of the North Korean nuclear and missile programs,” he expressed. “Pyongyang has been openly rejecting the authority of the Security Council and pursuing an increasingly dangerous and aggressive nuclear policy, specifically directed at the Republic of Korea.”
The group's current authority expires on April 30. Their recent report, issued this March, examined alleged cyberattacks by North Korea to further strengthen its nuclear weapons program.
Russia's representative at the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, was not convinced about the group's independence.
“Its work is increasingly being reduced to playing into the hands of Western approaches, printing biased information and analyzing newspaper headlines and poor quality photos,” Nebenzia said to the Security Council before Thursday's vote, as reported by Reuters.
