North Korea Flouting Nuclear Sanctions, UN Report

North Korean soldiers attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang on Nov. 29, 2017. (Getty Images)
North Korean soldiers attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang on Nov. 29, 2017. (Getty Images)
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North Korea Flouting Nuclear Sanctions, UN Report

North Korean soldiers attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang on Nov. 29, 2017. (Getty Images)
North Korean soldiers attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang on Nov. 29, 2017. (Getty Images)

North Korea is violating international sanctions aimed at curbing its nuclear program by exceeding a cap on petroleum imports and sending its workers overseas, including a former Juventus footballer, the United Nations said.

Pyongyang is subject to a range of restrictions imposed since 2017 that limit its oil imports and ban exports of coal, fish and textiles.

It has nonetheless continued to develop its nuclear and ballistic missile arsenal, analysts say, despite three high-profile meetings between leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump.

The UN Security Council on Monday said an annual 500,000 barrel cap on imports of refined petroleum products had been broken in just the first five months of 2020.

A report by the intergovernmental panel said deliveries to the authoritarian state "far exceeded" the ceiling, based on "imagery, data and calculations".

"The Democratic People's Republic of Korea and foreign-flagged vessels and their owners continued elaborate evasion practices" to illicitly import oil, UN experts said, using the North's official name.

The report did not say which countries had been exporting to North Korea but shipments also included luxury cars and alcohol.

China and Russia, Pyongyang's key allies, dismissed the findings, saying they were "based on assumptions and estimations".

The UN report said the North "continued to flout Security Council resolutions through illicit maritime exports of coal, although it suspended such exports temporarily between late January and early March 2020".

Negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington over the North's nuclear program are at a standstill over disputes on sanctions relief and what the North would be willing to give up in return.

The report pointed out that professional footballer Han Kwang Song was transferred from Serie A club Juventus to Al-Duhail in Qatar in January in violation of UN resolutions banning North Korean nationals working overseas.

"Although the panel contacted Italy and Qatar on Mr. Han's transfer immediately after the announcement, the transfer has not been cancelled," the UN report said.

The 22-year-forward was paid approximately $607,000 per year by Juventus between 2018 and January 2020, it added.

He will receive more than $5 million over the next five years from his new team under a multi-year contract.

"The panel reiterated to Qatar the relevant resolutions concerning the case," the report said.

The UN sanctions require member states to repatriate North Koreans working overseas, with a deadline to do so passing in December 2019.

But the panel said "only around 40" nations had submitted reports on efforts to send back citizens.



Iran’s President Says Tehran Open to Dialogue with US, Accuses Israel of Assassination Attempt

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a meeting in Ilam, Iran, June 12, 2025. Iran's Presidential website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuter
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a meeting in Ilam, Iran, June 12, 2025. Iran's Presidential website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuter
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Iran’s President Says Tehran Open to Dialogue with US, Accuses Israel of Assassination Attempt

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a meeting in Ilam, Iran, June 12, 2025. Iran's Presidential website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuter
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a meeting in Ilam, Iran, June 12, 2025. Iran's Presidential website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuter

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he believes Iran can resolve its differences with the United States through dialogue, but trust would be an issue after US and Israeli attacks on his country, according to an interview released on Monday.

"I am of the belief that we could very much easily resolve our differences and conflicts with the United States through dialogue and talks," Pezeshkian told conservative US podcaster Tucker Carlson in an interview conducted on Saturday.

The Iranian leader urged US President Donald Trump not to be drawn into war with Iran by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is visiting Washington on Monday for talks at the White House.

"The United States' president, Mr. Trump, he is capable enough to guide the region towards the peace and a brighter future and put Israel in its place. Or get into a pit, an endless pit, or a swamp," Pezeshkian said. "So it is up to the United States president to choose which path."

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said she was not sure if Trump had seen the Iranian president's comments, but agreed he was the right man to move the region towards peace.

Pezeshkian blamed Israel, Iran's arch-enemy, for the collapse of talks that were in place when Israel began its strikes on Iran on June 13, starting a 12-day air war with Israel in which top Iranian commanders and nuclear scientists were killed.

"How are we going to trust the United States again?" Pezeshkian said. "How can we know for sure that in the middle of the talks the Israeli regime will not be given the permission again to attack us?"

Pezeshkian also said that Israel tried to assassinate him.

"They did try, yes," he said. "They acted accordingly, but they failed."

Israel did not immediately respond to the allegation. A senior Israeli military official said last month that Israel killed more than 30 senior security officials and 11 senior nuclear scientists in its attack on to Iran's nuclear sites.

Trump said he expected to discuss Iran and its nuclear ambitions with Netanyahu, praising the US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites as a tremendous success. On Friday, he told reporters that he believed Tehran's nuclear program had been set back permanently, although Iran could restart efforts elsewhere.

Iran has always denied seeking a nuclear weapon.