Detention: Mexico Just Following Orders
Mexico's foreign ministry said on Thursday it is only holding a North Korean ship that ran aground in its waters last year in order to comply with United Nations rules.
The 6,700-tonne freighter Mu Du Bong, which had come from Cuba, hit a reef near Tuxpan in Mexico's eastern Veracruz state in July last year.
North Korea's Deputy U.N. Ambassador on Wednesday accused Mexico of illegally detaining the ship and crew, warning it would take "necessary measures" to release the vessel.
In a statement explaining why it had not yet released the vessel, Mexico's foreign ministry said authorities had originally fined the ship's owners for the environmental damage it caused. But before releasing the ship, the United Nations told Mexico there was evidence it belonged to blacklisted North Korean firm, Ocean Maritime Management Company (OMM).
The foreign ministry said a UN delegation had visited the ship to investigate, adding that under the UN Charter it could not release the ship until the investigation was over.
The foreign ministry also said the 33 crew members were enjoying "free transit" and had not been charged with anything, stressing that the detention of the ship was not motivated by differences between the two countries.
Ocean Maritime Management in Disguise
In February, a U.N. experts report claimed that OMM had renamed most of its vessels in a bid to disguise their origin and continues its illicit shipments in violation of United Nations sanctions.
The U.N. Security Council's Panel of Experts on North Korea, which monitors implementation of sanctions on Pyongyang, also said in the 76-page report that North Korea "continued to defy Security Council resolutions by persisting with its nuclear and ballistic missile programs."
North Korea is under United Nations sanctions because of its nuclear tests and missile launches. In addition to arms, Pyongyang is banned from importing and exporting nuclear and missile technology and is not allowed to import luxury goods.
Last July, the council blacklisted OMM for arranging an illegal shipment on the Chong Chon Gang, which was seized in Panama and found to be carrying arms, including two MiG-21 jet fighters, hidden under thousands of tons of Cuban sugar.
The report said OMM worked with individuals and entities based in countries such as Brazil, China, Egypt, Greece, Japan, Malaysia, Peru, Russia, Singapore and Thailand.
The panel recommended that the council's sanctions committee blacklist 34 OMM entities including Chongchongang Shipping Co, Amnokgang Shipping and Biryugang Shipping. It also recommended sanctioning OMM Vice President Choe Chol Ho, Chongchongang Shipping President Kim Ryong Chol and three Chongchongang directors.