Another threat from North Korea that has never been discussed
(Baonghean.vn) - As US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with North Korean officials on July 7 to discuss ways to achieve the goal of denuclearizing North Korea, the world is less focused on another related challenge.
That is how to prevent Pyongyang from continuing to sell nuclear weapons and capabilities to “rogue” states around the world.
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| North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Photo: AP |
North Korea, which is struggling to cope with international economic sanctions, is using arms deals to raise vital cash worth millions of dollars.
Even if the nuclear weapons and capabilities sold by North Korea were never used against the United States or its allies, they still pose a threat to the entire world and could be used to harm foreign fighters and innocent civilians.
A prime example is Sudan, on the other side of the world, where Pyongyang sells weapons to the government of President Omar Bashir.
Sudan has long been a reliable buyer of North Korean weapons, a relationship that has been well documented over the years, despite UN Security Council Resolution 1718 banning arms sales between North Korea and any UN member state.
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| The US has listed Sudan as a state sponsor of terrorism. Photo: AP |
According to UN data on North Korea released in February 2017, in August 2013 Pyongyang provided Sudan with 100 precision-guided missile control units and 80 satellite-guided air-to-air missiles, under two contracts worth more than $6.4 billion between the two sides.
Military procurement deals often involve the transfer of millions of dollars in cash, which is easily embezzled by public sector officials. “All North Korean diplomats working abroad are trying to generate additional income by any means possible,” said a defecting North Korean ambassador.
The same is true on the Sudanese side, where Sudanese government officials “routinely engage in corrupt practices with impunity.” Sudanese President Omar Bashir’s government has purchased heavy weapons from North Korea to wage war against its own people.
Even if the Sudanese military does not purchase weapons from North Korea, the US still needs to hold Sudan accountable for its sinister behavior and continue to list the country as a state sponsor of terrorism, as the Bashir regime destroys churches and executes the North African country’s Christian minority./.