Russia Vetoes UN Resolution to Extend Monitoring of Sanctions Against North Korea

The veto by Russia marks the first time Moscow has tried to block the work of the panel of experts.

The UN Security Council votes on a motion at the UN headquarters in New York City, N.Y., on March 22, 2024. Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

Russia has “undermined international peace and security” by vetoing a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution that sought to extend the mandate of a panel of experts responsible for monitoring and reporting on sanctions imposed on North Korea, the Biden administration has said.

The comments from Washington followed a vote on the resolution, introduced by the United States, on March 28.

The resolution would have extended the U.N. North Korea Sanctions Committee Panel of Experts mandate to monitor and report on the country’s growing nuclear program until April 30, 2025.

However, a 13-1 vote, with the negative vote cast by the council’s permanent member Russia, meant the council rejected the draft, and the panel will now halt its operation when its current mandate expires at the end of April. China, a key ally of Moscow, abstained from voting.

Before the vote, Russia’s permanent representative to the U.N., Vasily Nebenzya, said the situation in North Korea has “changed fundamentally” in recent years, and accused Western countries—led by the United States— of “strangling” Pyongyang.

Mr. Nebenzya added that recent years have made it clear that sanctions against North Korea have failed to achieve the desired outcome by the international community or normalize the situation on the peninsula.

Washington ‘Deeply Disappointed’

“They have also not encouraged dialogue and yet impose a heavy burden on the population of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” he said.

The veto by Russia marks the first time Moscow has tried to block the work of the panel of experts, which had been renewed annually by the U.N. Security Council for 14 years.

Speaking to reporters after the vote, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Wahington was “deeply disappointed” by Russia’s veto.

“For the past 15 years, the 1718 Committee Panel of Experts has been the gold standard for providing fact-based, independent analysis and recommendations on the implementation of UN sanctions on the DPRK. Throughout those 15 years, the panel of experts enjoyed the Security Council’s unanimous support, and up until this year has been renewed by consensus,” Mr. Miller said.

“Russia’s actions today have cynically undermined international peace and security, all to advance the corrupt bargain that Moscow has struck with the DPRK (North Korea)” he continued. “Moscow appears to be intent on facilitating the DPRK’s illegal pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and its veto today was a self-interested effort to bury the panel’s reporting on its own collusion with the DPRK to secure weapons that it can use to further its aggression against Ukraine.”

China Abstains

Mr. Miller said Washington is also disappointed that China decided to abstain from voting on the resolution following “14 years of supporting this important mandate.”

Despite the veto and abstention, Mr. Miller noted that all Security Council resolutions and U.N. measures addressing North Korea’s unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs remain in effect.

A TV screen shows a file image of North Korea's missile launch during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, on Jan. 28, 2024. Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo

“We will continue to work to counter the DPRK’s unlawful actions, work with like-minded states through all available means to limit the threat posed by the DPRK, and respond to efforts by its enablers to shield the DPRK from responsibility,” the State Department spokesman said.

The Security Council imposed sanctions on North Korea following its first nuclear test in 2006, leading to the establishment of the U.N. North Korea Sanctions Committee to monitor the implementation of those sanctions.

Since then, the council has moved, albeit unsuccessfully, to cut funding to North Korea and curb its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

Earlier this month, the White House warned Russia is now using North Korean ballistic missiles in its war against Ukraine.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.